The Committee of the Regions has requested that it be allowed to participate in the Convention on the future of the EU as a full member. The request came in the form of a resolution passed during its plenary session on 19-20 September. This convention will be held in 2002 in order to prepare the next reform of the European treaties and institutions.
The resolution underlines the importance of guaranteeing greater representativeness and greater proximity in the preparation of the next reform of the Treaties, by involving all political actors, including CoR representatives, NGOs and civil society.
The CoR declares that it is not satisfied with a role in the Civil Society Forum, which is to be held parallel to the Convention, and requests full membership of the Convention.
At the same time, the CoR calls for recognition of its institutional legitimacy and for a reassesment of its role as a representative of local and regional players. It points at its political legitimacy conferred by the Treaty of Nice (members hold an electoral mandate within a local authority, or are politically accountable to an elected assembly).