E U R O P E A N E C O N O M I C A R E A SECOND MEETING OF THE EEA EFTA FORUM. Brussels, November Minutes

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1 E U R O P E A N E C O N O M I C A R E A FORUM OF LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES Ref January Annexes SECOND MEETING OF THE EEA EFTA FORUM Brussels, November 2010 Minutes The meeting was chaired jointly by Mr Halvdan Skard, Chair, President of the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS) and Mr Halldor Halldorsson, Vice- Chair, Chairman of the ic Association of Local Authorities (SAMBAND). 1. Opening of meeting Mr Halvdan Skard welcomed the members to the Second meeting of the EEA EFTA Forum. He recalled the Forum s decision to convene its second meeting in Brussels in order to facilitate contact with other EFTA institutions and the EU Committee of Regions (CoR). Mr Skard also informed the Forum of a letter sent to Mr Ewald Ospelt, Mayor of the City of Vaduz, inviting the local authorities of Liechtenstein to become active members of the Forum. 2. Current affairs in the EEA EFTA states Roundtable discussion Mr Halldór Halldórsson gave a presentation on current affairs in. He addressed the economic difficulties faced by many ic municipalities and briefed the Forum on the transfer of the responsibilities for services for people with disabilities from the state to the local authorities, taking effect on 1 January The aim of the transfer is, inter alia: to improve and streamline services and more efficiently tailor them to the needs of the individual, to strengthen the local level and simplify the division of tasks between the state and the municipalities and ensure that the bulk of social service is in the hands of the local level. Mr Halldorsson furthermore informed the Forum of the ongoing revision of the ic Local Government Act. The main changes being discussed include the finances of municipalities and financial monitoring, municipal cooperation and the rights and duties of elected representatives. Mr Halvdan Skard briefed the Forum on the present economic situation in Norwegian local and regional authorities and presented an initiative by the Norwegian Government to prepare a report on the different aspects of state governance (n. statlig styring). He furthermore informed the Forum of the establishment of an independent committee under the auspices of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The committee s task is to undertake a thorough, research-based review of Norway s agreements with the EU, of which the EEA Agreement is the most important. Finally, Mr Skard informed the Forum that the EEA/EFTA States have signed a new agreement with the EU on a funding scheme of 1.79 billion to reduce economic and social disparities in the European Economic Area for the period May April The funds provide important opportunities for local and regional authorities to cooperate.

2 -2- Ref Ms Hilde Onarheim, Forum member, briefed the Forum on the ongoing reform of Norway s healthcare system which has the main aim of improving coordination between the hospitals and municipalities. 3. Decision shaping in the EEA and the role of the Secretariat Mr Marius Vahl, Officer, EEA Co-ordination Division, gave an overview of the processes of decision shaping in the EEA and the role of the Secretariat. The presentation included an overview of the structures of working groups, committees and other advisory bodies. Mr Vahl also commented on the challenges for the EEA EFTA States in these processes, and underlined that timing is of particular essence when influencing the decision shaping. 4. Recent developments in waste management relevant to local and regional authorities (WEEE Directive and bio-waste) Ms Angelika Poth-Mögele, Director of Policy, Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) gave a presentation of the organization s work. She noted that despite the fact that an increasing number of EU decisions, e.g. in the field of environment, affect local and regional authorities, many EU Member States still do not take the local and regional level adequately into account when transposing directives into national laws. Ms Gunnel Klingberg, Secretary General, Municipal Waste Europe, gave a presentation of the work of the organization and the status of political processes concerning waste management. Ms Klingberg noted the importance of involving the local authorities in the process of the recast of the WEEE Directive, as well as in the current discussion on bio-waste. The Forum unanimously adopted an opinion on the management of bio-waste in the EEA (Annex II). 5. Visit to the European Union Committee of the Regions ( CoR) The Forum met with Gerhard Stahl, Secretary General of Committee of Regions (CoR) and members of the CoR Secretariat. On behalf of the Forum Mr Halldórsson thanked the Secretary General for the kind invitation to discuss the possibilities for contact and cooperation between the CoR and the Forum. He then presented the Forum and the background and the rationale for establishing a forum for local and regional elected representatives within the EEA EFTA States. On behalf of the CoR Mr Stahl welcomed the members of the Forum and expressed his pleasure at the opportunity to meet with the EEA EFTA Forum to discuss cooperation. He then gave a presentation on the work and structures of the CoR. Mr Stahl expressed the view that when organizing cooperation, the two bodies should place focus on relevant issues, rather than on formal structures. He suggested that cooperation between the Forum and the CoR could be established on political and administrative level on specific issues identified as priorities for both bodies for the coming period. Furthermore, he invited Forum experts to attend CoR meetings of interest and relevance for the Forum.

3 -3- Ref Mr Carsten Brauns, Directorate for Consultative Works, gave an overview of the CoR s involvement in the discussion on bio-waste. As a conclusion from the discussion it was agreed that the Forum would examine the work programmes of the EU Commission and the CoR, in order to identify issues of importance and relevance for future cooperation with the CoR. On the basis of these priorities, cooperation will be established between rapporteurs of the Forum and CoR rapporteurs and between the respective secretariats. 6. Presentation of the EFTA Surveillance Authority and current issues relevant to local and regional authorities Mr Per Sanderud, President, EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA), gave an overview of the organization and its work. He presented current issues relevant to local and regional authorities, e.g. cases regarding public procurement, state aid rules and competition rules and cases concerning the four freedoms. Mr Sanderud informed the Forum that any party may contact ESA informally for information and clarification on specific issues and thus possible conflicts may be resolved at an early stage, for the benefit of all parties. The presentation was followed by questions and comments. The Forum discussed potential arenas for dialogue with ESA - on general as well as specific topics. It was noted that this issue should be examined carefully because of the different issues at stake in Norwegian and ic ESA cases. It may therefore be more useful to initiate bilateral contact on behalf of KS and SAMBAND, respectively. Ms Åse Erdal, Head of Brussels Office, KS, introduced a factsheet on the State Aid rules, produced by KS in cooperation with ESA and the Norwegian Government. 7. Presentation of the EFTA Court and current issues relevant to local and regional authorities Mr Skúli Magnússon, Registrar of the EFTA Court, gave a presentation on the Court and its working methods. He briefed the Forum on recent cases brought before the Court and confirmed that the EEA Agreement increasingly affects the local and regional level. The presentation was followed by questions and comments. 8. Future work of the Forum Members discussed the future work and methods of the Forum, stressing that limited resources and only two meetings a year call for prioritizing and choosing topics for 2011 early in the year. It was noted that no formal response has yet been received to the letters sent to the EFTA Parliamentary Committee (PC) and the EFTA Consultative Committee (CC) following the Forum s first meeting. The Forum discussed the use of written procedure and it was noted that this should only be used in exceptional cases.

4 It was agreed that The Forum should give priority to initiate cooperation with the EFTA Ministers and the EFTA PC. The Forum should follow up the invitation for cooperation with the Committee of Regions. Possible topics for the Forum in 2011 could be: o Public procurement o Possible future EU directive on water efficiency of buildings o Environmental issues o Regional policy Public procurement will be placed on the agenda for the next meeting. Part of the meeting may be organized as an introductory seminar on topics related to s services of general interests, possibly in cooperation with the EFTA PC. Ms Hilde Onarhem was appointed rapporteur on public procurement. SAMBAND will appoint a co-rapporteur. 9. Any other business No other business was raised. 10. Next meeting It was agreed that the next meeting could be organized in connection with the EFTA meetings in Vaduz June in the days before or after the other EFTA meetings. Alternatively, the next meeting of the Forum may be organized in Norway in the spring End of meeting Mr Skard thanked the members of the Forum for a fruitful meeting and the secretariat for the well prepared documents and the organisation of the meeting. Mr Skard concluded by thanking the EFTA Secretariat for its assistance in preparations for the meeting and for kindly providing the meeting facilities.

5 Annex I LIST OF PARTICIPANTS SECOND MEETING OF THE EEA EFTA FORUM Brussels 25 and 26 November :30-17:30 9:30-15:00 ICELAND Elected Representatives Ms Guðríður Arnardóttir Ms Albertína Friðbjörg Elíasdóttir Mr Halldór Halldórsson (Vice-Chair) Mr Bjarni Jónsson Mr Sveinn Kristinsson Mr Gunnar Þórarinsson ic Association of Local Authorities Regional Municipal Organisation of the Westfjords ic Association of Local Authorities Regional Municipal Organisation of North West Regional Municipal Organisation of Western Regional Municipal Organisation of South West ****************** Ms Anna Guðrún Björnsdóttir Ms Guðrún Dögg Guðmundsdóttir Ms Hrefna B. Jónsdóttir ic Association of Local Authorities ic Association of Local Authorities Regional Municipal Organisation of Western NORWAY Elected Representatives Ms Hilde Onarheim Mr Lars Salvesen (26 November only) Mr Halvdan Skard (Chair) Bergen City Council Akershus County Municipality of Bærum

6 ****************** Mr Einar Ekern (25 November only) Authorities Ms Åse Erdal Mr Knut Hjorth-Johansen Authorities Authorities Ms Bente Stenberg-Nilsen (26 November only) Authorities Mr Jon Østensvig (26 November only) Authorities SPEAKERS Ms Gunnel Klingberg Mr Skúli Magnússon Ms Angelika Poth-Mögele Mr Per Sanderud Mr Marius Vahl Secretary General, Municipal Waste Europe Registrar, EFTA Court Director of Policy, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions President, EFTA Surveillance Authority Officer, EFTA, EEA Co-ordination Division EFTA SECRETARIAT Ms Bergdis Ellertsdóttir Mr Lars Erik Nordgaard Deputy Secretary-General, Brussels EEA Co-ordination Division

7 Annex II OPINION ON THE MANAGEMENT OF BIOWASTE IN THE EEA The EEA EFTA Forum of Local and Regional Authorities: A. Having regard to the on-going discussion in the European Union on whether there is a need for separate legislation on the management of biowaste in Europe, B. Noting the differentiating views between the European Commission and the European Parliament and between Member States on the subject matter, C. Sharing the view that the overall goal is to prevent and reduce the production of biowaste, D. Taking into account the existing legislation on waste management in the EEA and the experiences with the implementation of the Waste Framework Directive locally in the EEA EFTA states, E. Recognising the key role of local authorities in waste management and the need for certainty and clarity on waste regulation in particular to help inform local decisions on investment and policy choices, F. Noting the response by Council of European Municipalities and Regions to the green paper on the management of biowaste and the opinion of the European Union Committee of the Regions, 1. underlines that management of biowaste has a strong local dimension and that it is not possible to identify one European best option for biowaste treatment; 2. believes the approach to biowaste should primarily be integrated within waste and resource management policy; 3. emphasises that local authorities, as the competent authorities and in line with the principle of subsidiarity, should be free to choose the most appropriate methods for environmentally friendly and efficient biowaste management adopted to local needs, and therefore; 4. believes there is no need for separate legislation on European level on the management of biowaste; 5. asks the EFTA Ministers to take into account the opinion of the Forum in the future discussion on the management of biowaste.