Housing crisis: Only 300 properties available for rent in Dublin
While supply is becoming virtually nonexistent, rents are increasing faster than anytime in the last 16 years
Vasco Cordeiro is the new President of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), Source: Vasco Cordeiro on Facebook
Vasco Alves Cordeiro comes from the Azores archipelago of Portugal, and is thus the first CoR President from that country and from an outermost region
Vasco Alves Cordeiro is the name of the new President of the European Committee of the Region (CoR), the highest representative body that defends the interests of the EU’s local and regional governments. Mr Cordeiro, who was elected yesterday, comes from the Azores Islands – a Portuguese autonomous region, whose president he was from 2012 to 2020. He’s currently the leader of the PS political group at the Azores regional parliament.
The election makes him the second Portuguese president of an EU institution and the first Portuguese President of the Committee of the Regions. He is also the only President of an EU institution who comes from an outermost region of the EU.
The New CoR President will lead the representative body for the next two and a half years. The outgoing leader, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, Governor of Central Macedonia in Greece, will assume the position of First Vice-President.
Presenting the priorities for his mandate and speaking to the 329 CoR members from all 27 EU member states, the new President said: "what the present times require is a stronger and fairer Europe, for all. A stronger Europe that advances, exactly, from the unapologetic affirmation of its values and founding principles, such as freedom, respect for human dignity, tolerance, the rule of law and democracy, among others. A stronger Europe that is also based on promoting greater and systematic citizen participation in the decision-making processes."
In light of the ongoing war against Ukraine, Vasco Alves Cordeiro wants the CoR to continue supporting Ukraine and to strengthen the European perspective of the country. He made clear that "cities and towns of Europe are at the forefront of the support for Ukraine’s integration process into the great European family."
He further added: "We want to support our Ukrainian partners now and in the future for the reconstruction. This is why we are launching the Alliance for Ukraine during this plenary."
Lastly, the new President pointed out that the European Union must focus on ensuring the role of cohesion policy as a pillar of the European project, making sure that no people and no places are left behind. "The dilution of cohesion policy in the future post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework is a risk that should not and cannot be overlooked. The Committee of the Regions must therefore hold its ground in the defence of a policy which has still much to give for achieving the idea of leaving no one behind, that is, the Union's own ideal."
EU border countries and communities are increasingly growing uneasy about tolerating daily visits from the aggressor country
The local Senate has introduced a package of measures, aiming to curb municipal energy consumption
This is a brand new step in the internationalization strategy of the Italian state railway company plans to expand
Greece is the only country that registered an increase, compared to numbers from July 2022
The flying machines will disperse seed balls in order to try to save the thin and sensitive soil from erosion in the autumn
If the system proves successful, authorities will scale it up to the rest of Dublin
City authorities say that the park would be complete by mid-December
This summer, the Iberian Peninsula has turned into a veritable tinder source ready for disaster
Greece is the only country that registered an increase, compared to numbers from July 2022
EU border countries and communities are increasingly growing uneasy about tolerating daily visits from the aggressor country
The monument will be a creative and literally moving sculpture called ‘Standing Waves’
The famous Zundert Corso returns on 4-5 September 2022
These will be spread across 11 EU countries and will serve to support the EU Missions
The European Commission has accepted to develop the idea
An interview about AYR, one of the 2021 New European Bauhaus Prize winners
A conversation with the President of the European Committee of the Regions, about energy, climate change and the underrated importance of cohesion policy
Interview with Herald Ruijters, Director, Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE), European Commission
A conversation with the Mayor of Matosinhos, Portugal’s first UN Resilience Hub