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Resolution 2242 (2018) Provisional version
The role of national parliaments in successful decentralisation processes
1. The Parliamentary
Assembly reaffirms the essential role of decentralisation in making
public service more responsive to local needs, promoting an accountable
exercise of power and building trust in public authorities. Decentralisation
has the capacity to improve the well-being of everyone, consolidate
democratic systems and promote inclusive growth. All 47 Council
of Europe member States have ratified the European Charter of Local
Self-Government (ETS No. 122), thereby recognising that local democracy
is a shared European value.
2. The Assembly welcomes the decision of the Croatian Chairmanship
of the Committee of Ministers (18 May-21 November 2018) to include
decentralisation among its priorities, as this provides a valuable opportunity
to take stock of good practice and lessons learned, and to give
a new impetus to decentralisation in the Council of Europe member
States.
3. Against this backdrop, the Assembly is concerned about the
current trend of decentralisation processes stalling or being reversed
in some countries.
4. The Assembly notes that some decentralisation processes have
not succeeded in achieving their stated objectives, due either to
inadequate consultation of citizens, local authorities and their
associations, to insufficient or too limited devolution of competences,
or to a discrepancy between the devolved responsibilities and available
financial resources. A high level of political polarisation in some
countries has also created substantial obstacles for such reforms.
5. The Assembly is convinced that local and regional democracy
must be further strengthened as an essential precondition to the
well-being and democratic security of our societies, and highlights
the importance of developing policies that build on past experiences,
are forward-looking and allow for ongoing adaptation.
6. The success of decentralisation depends, to a great extent,
on the quality of the political processes by which new agreements
to transfer competences, funding and staff are negotiated, endorsed
and implemented in practice. Parliaments are elected to represent
the will of the people and must be central actors in such processes,
as guarantors of general interest.
7. In the light of the above, the Assembly calls on the Council
of Europe member States to reinforce their support of decentralisation
through their laws, policies and practices, and in particular recommends
that they:
7.1. with respect to
national, federal and regional parliaments:
7.1.1. involve parliaments in the development and implementation
of decentralisation reforms from the very beginning and at all stages
of the process, including in monitoring and evaluation;
7.1.2. take measures to ensure that, once voted, decentralisation
processes are implemented as planned (subject to changes dictated
by evolving experience), in the interest of the populations concerned,
with full respect for national constitutional orders and the rule
of law, and are not unreasonably rolled back because of changing
parliamentary majorities. This can include the setting up or the
consolidation, where they exist, of permanent parliamentary committees, monitoring
bodies, joint government/parliament committees or multi-partner
platforms entrusted with overseeing decentralisation processes;
7.1.3. ensure that the rules of procedure of relevant committees
include specific provisions on the organisation of consultations
with local authorities, including full access for local authority representatives
to all relevant documents and a possibility to present written opinions
on draft legislation;
7.1.4. support the organisation of comprehensive and effective
consultations on decentralisation issues, bringing together associations
of local and regional authorities, non-governmental organisations
and citizens, in particular on draft laws to be discussed in parliament;
7.1.5. enshrine in legislation the key mechanisms of decentralisation,
including those dealing with consultation, the definition of competences
of different levels of government and capacity building for public
servants, in line with the provisions of the European Charter of
Local Self-Government, in particular the principle of local self-government;
7.1.6. ensure that the financial and fiscal capacities of local
and regional authorities match the responsibilities being transferred
in the process of decentralisation. This will guarantee the stability
and continuity of quality public services committed to by the State
and provided by local authorities to citizens;
7.1.7. strengthen popular confidence in local democracy by ensuring
that local authorities dealing with decentralisation have political
legitimacy. In this regard, facilitate the organisation of local
elections in a timely manner, and introduce proper safeguards to
prevent the unjustified delay of the electoral process at the local/regional
level;
7.1.8. improve access to public services by ensuring adequate
representation of local communities and indigenous peoples in legislatures,
on the basis of the principles of inclusivity and non-discrimination;
7.2. with respect to the statutory framework:
7.2.1. ensure that decentralisation
processes take place within reciprocal respect of an institutional
and constitutional framework, in consultation with all the parties
concerned;
7.2.2. provide adequate legal guarantees to ensure that local
authorities may implement their powers effectively and without obstacles
establishing effective mechanisms of accountability that ensure
compliance with transfer agreements among different administrations;
7.2.3. establish or strengthen the regulatory framework for ensuring
financial stability of local and regional authorities and a fair
distribution of public financial resources between the different tiers
of government;
7.2.4. establish or strengthen equalisation mechanisms to ensure
a degree of solidarity between better-off and less well-off authorities
throughout the country, while avoiding penalising the most successful
and efficient local authorities for their efforts;
7.2.5. ensure the existence of well-designed decision-making
procedures for the reform of boundaries and/or structures of local
and regional authorities;
7.2.6. ensure that equality of access to public services across
sub-national entities is at the core of any decentralisation process;
7.3. with respect to capacity building, public awareness and
co-operation:
7.3.1. run awareness-raising
and information campaigns to promote broader participation in public
debate on decentralisation, including the use of e-participation
tools;
7.4. with respect to Council of Europe instruments and institutions:
7.4.1. ensure the full implementation
of the recommendations of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities
of the Council of Europe resulting from their monitoring missions
to member States of the Council of Europe and roadmaps prepared
within the framework of Congress post-monitoring activities in order
to fully comply with the commitments under the European Charter of
Local Self-Government;
7.4.2. withdraw the existing reservations to the provisions of
the European Charter of Local Self-Government; sign and ratify the
Additional Protocol to the Charter on the right to participate in
the affairs of a local authority (CETS No. 207); and ensure the
direct applicability of the Charter in domestic legal systems;
7.4.3. sign and ratify – as appropriate – the European Outline
Convention on Transfrontier Co-operation between Territorial Communities
or Authorities (ETS No. 106, “Madrid Convention”) and its three
Protocols;
7.4.4. make full use of Committee of Ministers’ “Guidelines for
civil participation in political decision making” (CM(2017)83-final);
7.4.5. make full use of the capacity-building tools for good
governance developed by the Centre of Expertise for Local Government
Reform, such as the tools on the 12 Principles of Good Governance,
and of the assistance and guidance available through the European
Committee on Democracy and Governance (CDDG).
8. For its part, the Assembly resolves to further strengthen
its co-operation with the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities,
in particular through the work of the Assembly’s General Rapporteur
on Local and Regional Authorities, and continued dialogue between
the monitoring bodies of the Assembly and the Congress. The Assembly
also resolves to continue to be involved in the work of the European
Committee on Democracy and Governance with a view to sustaining
and facilitating dialogue with governments and promoting decentralisation
goals.