50 billion Euros a year are at stake in the forthcoming reform of EU regional policy. To make sure that the requests of regions and cities are taken on board at an early stage, the Committee of the Regions today presented its outline for the future of EU cohesion policy after 2013. Following a plenary debate with Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, local and regional politicians adopted an outlook opinion drafted by Michael Schneider (DE/EPP). The opinion urges EU partners and national governments to retain an ambitious cohesion policy as a "core element" of the European integration model. [more]