III. Justification for a European Spatial Development Policy

The need for a European Spatial Development Policy ensues from consistent regard for the subsidiarity principle and from the fact that although the Treaty establishing the European Community (EC Treaty) contains many space relevant sector policies, it does not hitherto assign competencies in respect of spatial development policy. A justification must, therefore, demonstrate that in the light of the economic and political fusion which is currently taking place in Europe, public-sector responsibility for the discharging of this task can no longer satisfactorily be left exclusively to the regional or national level, but must be complemented by a European component.

Taking the criteria from the economic theory of federalism as underpinning for this justification, the following spheres of activity emerge as being especially relevant to a European Spatial Development Policy:

- pursuing the issue of cohesion (overcoming inter-regional disparities, reduction of inter-regional economic development problems, social conflicts and the alleviation of other points of regional conflict, whilst at the same time preserving diversity wherever possible) as a justification, within the sense of policies to improve distribution and balance of welfare within the EU territory, for the "strengthening of economic and social cohesion", and equally in order to "improve the quality of life for EU citizens";

- the creation of Trans-European Networks (TENs) (either cross-border or covering the entire EU territory), in particular by enhancing transport infrastructure in order to improve inter-regional accessibilities (need for coordination, network effects, priority for rail networks);

- cross-border cooperation (attention to fiscal equivalence principle, reinforcement of liability principle and congruence of beneficiaries and benefactors) to take account of interdependencies and linkages, of geographical continuity of the natural environment and pollution effects (emission/immission effects) within national borders, in connection with transnationality (EU internal frontiers and external borders) and in the interests of the vertical interlocking of spatial development in border regions;

- the designation of "community assets" warranting protection (protected assets of European significance - protection of resources in cases of over-exploitation - common-goods and common-pool resources, preservation of cultural heritage), e.g. a Europe-wide system of biotopes, fisheries rights, use of cross-border water systems.

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity and the recognition of the need to preserve diversity, a European Spatial Development Policy as a joint policy of the EU Member States and the European Commission (Communityintergovernmental discharge of tasks) should limit itself to determining the primary inter-regional disparities which need to be overcome, the general structure of European transnational networks, the application of the Structural Funds, the degree of support for cooperation within regions-in particular cross-border cooperation-and to identifying what, from the Community perspective, are the relevant assets which warrant protection.

The same importance should be attached to more consistent coordination of departmental policies within the Commission, a matter which has hitherto been largely ignored.

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