 | Member states of the Council
of Europe and signatory states
of the 3rd protocol to the
Madrid Outline Convention |
The Council of Europe Conference of ministers responsible for local and regional government on 16 and 17 November in Utrecht opened to signature by the 47 member states of the Council of Europe the 3rd additional protocol to the Madrid Outline Convention* introducing a new cooperation structure: the Euroregional Cooperation Grouping (ECG), similar to the EGTC. Seven member states have already signed: Belgium, France, Germany, Lithuania, Montenegro, the Netherlands and Slovenia. Some extracts from the protocol are given below.
Part I - Article 1 – Euroregional co-operation groupings (ECGs)
[...] The objective of the ECG shall be to promote, support and develop, for the benefit of populations, transfrontier and interterritorial co-operation between its members in their common areas of competence and in keeping with the competences established under the national law of the States concerned.
Article 2 – Legal personality, legal capacity and applicable law
The ECG shall be a legal person, governed by the law of the Party, Council of Europe member State, in which it has its headquarters.
The ECG shall have the most extensive legal capacity accorded to legal persons under that State’s national law.
The law applicable to the type of corporate entity chosen for the ECG by the members shall be stipulated in the agreement establishing the ECG [...]
The ECG shall have the right to its own budget and the power to implement it.
The ECG may enter into contracts, hire staff, acquire movable and immovable property and bring legal proceedings.
Article 3 – Membership
Members of the ECG shall be territorial communities or authorities of a Party and may also include the respective member State concerned of the Council of Europe. All legal persons established for the specific purpose of meeting needs in the general interest, not having an industrial or commercial character may be members if:
- their activity is financed mainly by the state, a territorial community or authority or similar body; or
- their management is subject to the control of these entities; or
- half the members of their administrative, managerial or supervisory organ are appointed by the state, a territorial community or authority or similar body.
[...] Territorial communities or authorities of a State non-Party to this Protocol, which shares a border with a Party which is or will become the State in which the ECG has its headquarters, may take part in the establishment of, or join, this ECG if an agreement between these two States so allows, without prejudice to the provisions of this Protocol.
* European Outline Convention on transfrontier cooperation between territorial communities or authorities, signed by the member states of the Council of Europe.
Council of Europe - Congress of Local and Regional authorities.
Source: Cross-border news, No.55, December 2009
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