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Regional Institutions in Europe
Input to the discussions in the frame of the workshops from the
members of the Regional Development Councils (RDC) in Moldova
October 2013
Stefan Elsing
Dipl.-Ing.
Spatial & Regional Planning
GIZ-expert, Modernisation of Local Public Services in the Republic of Moldova
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For the purpose of these workshops for the RDCs in Moldova
not only those States with well-established regional level
government and administration like Poland or Germany are of
interest!
In particular countries without regional self-governance - including,
Latvia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia
etc. - may be even more interesting to be analysed as potential
benchmarks
... hand ou ts!!!
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Vertical State organisation in Europe
There are basically three types of vertical State organisation in
Europe:
1. Federations,2. Regionalised States and
3. Unitary States.
A unitary state is a state governed as one single unit in which the
central government is supreme and any administrative divisions
(subnational units) exercise only powers that their central
government chooses to delegate.
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Federation: Germany, Land Brandenburg
...
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...
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Joint Spatial Planning for the region
State planning – that’s the superior, supra-regional and interdisciplinary planning
for the spatial development of a federal state. In Berlin and Brandenburg, these
planning activities are performed with joint responsibility of two federal states.
Since 1996 the Joint Spatial Planning Department of Berlin and Brandenburg (GL – Gemeinsame Landesplanungsabteilung) has been responsible for regional
development and state planning in Berlin and Brandenburg.
The Joint Spatial Planning Department creates important fundamentals for
promoting growth and developing the infrastructure in the entire region.
In cooperation with the institutions of technical planning, the local authorities and
the citizens, the joint spatial planning department prepares future-oriented
framework conditions of regional planning for the development of the capital region.
...
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The Joint Spatial Planning Department prepares state developmentplans and partial plans of the state development programme being the
framework for state development.
• The state development programme (LEPro 2007)
• The state development plan of Berlin-Brandenburg (LEP B-B)
• A partial state development plan (LEP FS) focussing on the new airport
BBI was prepared that entered into force on 16 June 2006.
• The plans focused on former brown-coal mining sites and on their
rehabilitation are elaborated as spatial and objective partial plans by thestate planning authority and are adopted by the Brandenburg state
government as legal provisions.
...
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The Joint Spatial Planning Department ensures the adaptation of the
master development and town planning schemes in Berlin and
Brandenburg
• to the objectives of
regional development and thus
• focuses on the implementation
of the State Development Plan
at municipal level.
In order to check the spatial
compatibility of big projects of
spatial importance the Joint Spatial
Planning Department performs
regional planning procedures.
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Structure of the Joint Spatial Planning Department
Head of department;
Permanent deputy of
Unit GL 1 Strategic Planning and Law
Unit GL 2 European Spatial Development
Unit GL 3 State Development Programme and Regional
Development Plans
Unit GL 4 Regional Development and Structural Policy
Unit GL 5 Implementation of the Regional Development Plans ·
Northern Region
Unit GL 6 Implementation of the Regional Development Plans •
Southern Region, Brown Coal Areas
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Regional Planning inBrandenburg
Regional planning translates
the provisions derived from the
state development programmeand the state development
plans into
the regional plan.
...
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Institutions
The Regional Planning Associations are the supporting organisations in
the Brandenburg State. The administrative districts and autonomous
municipality authorities within the region are members thereof.
The Regional Assembly is the decision-taking body of the Regional
Planning Association.
It consists of
• a maximum of 40 “born” regional counsellors: from the county
commissioners and the mayors of the autonomous municipality
authorities, also the mayors of municipalities with more than 10,000inhabitants;
• Representatives of chambers, associations and others associated with
the development of regional institutions - as non-voting, advisory
members of the regional assembly.
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Institutions
The regional board
• … performs the duties assigned by the regional assembly.
• Members: chairman of the Regional Planning Association and the other
members of the Regional Board elected by the regional assembly.
The Regional Planning Offices
• … act as offices/ secretariats of the planning associations.
• They prepare the regional plans and present them for the purpose of
decision-taken by the bodies of the regional planning associations.
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Optional :
• Regional Plans,
• Regional Development Concepts
• ...
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Ensuring regional planning is realised by three tools in the planning region of Berlin
– Brandenburg that are regulated in the regional development act and in the stateplanning contract:
1. Adjustment of urban land-use planning to the objectives of regional
development by building law. In order to guarantee the municipalities contact
the Joint Spatial Planning Department at the beginning of a procedure on urban
land-use planning to get to know the objectives of regional development for therespective planning zone. If a municipality in Brandenburg does not fulfil its
obligation to adjust the state government may request the municipality, under
certain preconditions, to prepare or modify urban land-use plans.
2. The prohibition of spatially important planning processes and measures by the
Joint Spatial Planning Department toavoid that the implementation of efficienttargets of regional development or of those ones being under development are
rendered impossible or essentially aggravated.
3. As regards planning procedures and measures that might be spatially important
in the individual case and that are of supra-regional importance (e.g. trunk
roads, high-voltage overhead lines, shopping malls) the Joint Spatial Planning
Department performs regional planning procedures.
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Ensuring targeted planning and spatially related actions requires detailed
knowledge of the current spatial structures and forecasts regarding
spatially efficient development processes. .
Regional Development Report
Spatial planning registers
Regional Monitoring
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Interesting due to recent developments ...
Devolution – assymetrical regionalisation ...
Localism instead of regionalism;
National planning principles instead of
regional coordination
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Before (until 2011):
Responsibility for achieving the government’s regional development
targets: Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS)
Nine regional ministers appointed to strengthen the links between the
central government and the regions in England.
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Regional Assemblies in the eight plus one regions
Role included
• checking their regional development agencies;
• integrating policy development and enhancing partnership working atthe regional level across the social, economic and environmental policy
agenda;
• carrying out a wide range of advocacy and consultancy roles with UK
government bodies and the European Union.
• Acting as a Regional Planning Body with a duty to formulate a Regional
Spatial Strategy including Regional Transport Strategy, replacing the
planning function of county councils.
But: public profile was low!
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Regionalised State: UK, England
The Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) are / were councils (!)
• made up of local business representatives and members of public
commissions
• appointed by the central government.
RDAs were to set strategic priorities and allocate funding
But: had to take central government policy objectives into account andmeet performance targets set by central government.
RDAs were seen as crucial to vertical and horizontal co-ordination of
Regional policies, as well as having responsibility for managing the 2007-
2013 ERDF programmes.
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Now (since 2011):
National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) – and Local Development
Frameworks in conformity with the NPPF
A Minister of State for Decentralisation was appointed with the mandate to
progress the coalition government's commitment to giving away power.
Responsible for decentralisation and localism: “Department for Communities and
Local Government"(DCLG)
The "Structural Reform Plan" sets out how the Department's activities over the
period to 2015 are expected to put decision making in the hands of local
authorities, and to make central and local government more transparent.
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Now (since 2011):
The Localism Bill abolished the 8 RDAs outside London as well as the
London Development Agency (LDA), whose functions and assets will be
transferred to the Greater London Authority (GLA).
By March 2012, responsibility for economic development and regeneration
was passed onto successor bodies, including LEPs and central
Government departments, mainly the DCLG.
For the operation and delivery of the ERDF, the purposes and tasks of the
RDA will be taken over by the DCLG.
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Now (since 2011):
Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEP)
• are newly created business/local authority partnerships with private
sector chairs;
• Are involved in planning and investing in projects such as enterprise
support, infrastructure and transport;
• Take over many of the RDA's activities.
Some functions will remain nationally-led, e.g. business support,
innovation, low-carbon economy, but these will take into account LEP
capabilities and priorities.
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Regionalised State: UK, England
Now (since 2011):
No regional ministers - the new government plans to boost the role of
elected local authorities in supporting local economic recovery and growth
rather than through regional or national bodies.
New rights and powers to allow local communities to shape new
development by coming together to prepare neighbourhood plans.
Conditions are:
• they must have regard to national planning policy
• they must be in general conformity with strategic policies in the
development plan for the local area (i.e. such as in a core strategy)
• they must be compatible with EU obligations and human rights
requirements.
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Unitary States: Latvia
... Most similar in terms of structure, financing, cooperation with national
and local levels
Division into 5 statistical regions:
• the Riga region,including the cities of Riga and Jurmala
and the district of Riga;
• regions of Vidzeme, Kurzeme,
Zemgale and Latgale)
This division aligns best with the
NUTS level 3 regional criteria.
It is closely based on the administrative territorial division of Latvia during
the first period of independence.
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Unitary States: Latvia
The National Regional Development Council shall perform the following
functions in respect of regional development, spatial planning and land
policy:
• evaluate policy planning documents and draft regulatory enactments in relation
to regional policy, spatial planning and in the field of land policy;
• evaluate regional level planning documents, and facilitate their mutualcompatibility and co-ordination with State level policy planning documents;
• examine reports regarding the course of the implementation of regional policy,
spatial planning and land policy and provide proposals for the improvement of
the referred to policies;
• evaluate proposals regarding regional development support measures and
reports regarding the effectiveness of the implementation of the relevantmeasures, ensuring the mutual co-ordination of regional development support
measures;
• evaluate criteria for the territorial division of regional development support
measure financing; and
• perform other functions prescribed by regulatory enactments.
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Unitary States: Latvia
5 planning regions were established for the development planning
purpose [Regional Development Law, latest amendment: 8 November 2007 ].
Planning regions are secondary or derived public persons which act on the
regional administrative level.
The decision making body is planning region development council.
It is elected by the general meeting of all local self-governments' chairman
in the planning region from the deputies of the respective municipalities.
The Chairman of the Planning Region Development Council is elected from
the elected members of the council.
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Unitary States: Latvia
The planning region's functions are
• to ensure development planning of the region,
• coordination, cooperation of the municipalities and other public
institutions,
• manage and control the preparation and implementation of development
programmes and spatial plans;
• evaluate correspondence of the national plan, national development
plan and sectoral development programmes with the planning region's
documents;
• evaluate project applications of the local authorities and private persons
for the regional development state support and give resolutions on them.
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Unitary States: Latvia
Planning region development council confirms planning region's
statutes and budget.
It has rights to develop, reorganize and liquidate planning region's
institutions and to delegate its functions.
The Chairman of the planning region development councils or their
representatives have rights to take part in the work of the National
Regional Development Council.
Planning region development council meetings are open and
representatives of state administration institutions, nongovernmental
organizations, entrepreneurs and other planning regions' municipalities
can participate in the meeting.
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Unitary States: Latvia
Planning Region's Cooperation Commission is developed in every
planning region to ensure coordination and cooperation with the national
level institutions and planning regions in the implementation process of the
regional development support activities.
The Commission's meetings are open and representatives of the planning
region development council and cooperation coordinators of ministries
participate in them in this way ensuring information exchange between the
planning region and the respective ministry.
Planning Regions are active Partners in many international cooperation
projects, ...
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Unitary States: Latvia
Regional Development Law:
Relevant sect ion s in the hand outs!