EUKN - European Urban Knowledge Network - State aid control and regeneration of deprived urban areas

State aid control and regeneration of deprived urban areas

Introduction

The enlargement of the European Union welcomed 10 new Member States and added 75 million people to the European Union. In the EU over 60% of the population lives in urban areas of over 50.000 inhabitants, a figure that is expected to rise in future years as economic development increases.

Description

The urban question is an increasing political priority in the EU. A large number of the population of Member States live in cities. Cities and other urban areas play a decisive role in economic growth, employment and competitiveness. The importance of an integrated approach to urban regeneration becomes even more apparent in this context. A regeneration process is commonly targeted at revitalizing problem areas – namely by addressing shortcomings in natural and built environments, heritage conservation, social integration and employment and economic activities – in cities and their surroundings, but also in rural settings.

Conclusions

The Commission appreciates that different Member States tackle regeneration problems in different ways: they may wish either to invest directly in regeneration schemes or decide to also involve the private sector. The approach to regeneration from a state aid point of view must therefore bear this in mind and allow room for manoeuvre.
A formal regeneration framework based upon limited experience can quickly turn out to restrict choices and options. Therefore, for the time being, the current state aid rules – applied by and enriched through extensive cooperation between Member States and the Commission – deliver the necessary flexibility to accommodate all differing and innovative measures in a field that is constantly evolving.
Based on the experience gained with actual and future regeneration cases, the Commission will continue to assess whether there is a need for an additional, specific instrument on state aid for undertakings in deprived urban areas.

Contact info

DG Competition

Publication date

01/03/2006

Links

The European Commission, DG Competition

State aid control and regeneration of deprived urban areas (PDF, Eng, 440 KB)

Document type

research

Themes

Urban Policy > Urban environment > Urban renewal

Keywords

Urban restructuring