Local and regional authorities discuss EU industrial policy and Arctic strategy

The EEA EFTA Forum - consisting of local and regional authorities in Iceland and Norway - met for its 29th meeting in Brussels on 1 and 2 June. Swiss cantonal representatives participated as observers. The Forum also met with the Committee of the Regions to discuss possible avenues for cooperation.

During the meeting, participants discussed and adopted an Opinion on the EU Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) - the EU's key initiative to strengthen Europe's industrial resilience and competitiveness while accelerating decarbonisation. The Opinion stresses that local and regional authorities play a central role in implementing the IAA, particularly through land-use planning and public procurement. It further underlines that, as the democratic level closest to citizens, municipalities are essential for securing legitimacy and public acceptance of new industrial projects, which is a precondition for rapid and durable implementation.

Participants also discussed and adopted an Opinion on the ongoing revision of the EU's Arctic strategy. Since both Norway and Iceland are Arctic States and full members of the Arctic Council, the revised strategy is of high political relevance to them. The Opinion highlights that, in light of the geopolitical developments since the EU's last strategy in 2021, the new strategy should place increased emphasis on security and resilience, sustainable economic opportunities, and access to critical raw materials.

Other topics discussed during the meeting included the participation of the EEA EFTA States in EU programmes, the Directive on Urban Wastewater Treatment, and the Switzerland-EU package agreement. Thordur Jonsson, EFTA Deputy Secretary-General, held an exchange with participants on recent EEA developments.

On the sidelines of the meeting, a delegation of the Forum met with Petr Blížkovský, Secretary-General of the Committee of the Regions; Matthieu Hornung, Deputy Head of Cabinet of the President; and other representatives of the Committee of the Regions to discuss avenues for cooperation.

"Given the close integration of the EEA EFTA States into the EU's Internal Market through the EEA Agreement, our municipalities and regions face many of the same opportunities and challenges as their counterparts in the EU. We therefore very much look forward to a closer exchange and strengthened cooperation in the future," said Tom Georg Indrevik, Mayor of Øygarden municipality and Chair of the EEA EFTA Forum.

• twitter
• linkedin
• facebook
• email