Committee of the Regions

More protection: “It’s a good day for children”

(Bild: Iryna Inshyna/stock.adobe.com)

Carinthia's Governor Peter Kaiser (SPÖ) has been working on recommendations for child protection since autumn 2023, and on Thursday his opinion was adopted by the Committee of the Regions in Brussels. What happens now.

The Committee of the Regions (CoR) in Brussels, the headquarters of the European Union, unanimously adopted the opinion of Carinthia's Governor Peter Kaiser (SPÖ) on child protection on Thursday. "It is a very pleasing day for Carinthia, for Austria, but above all for children in Europe," he said with relief after his speech to politicians from 200 European regions.

Kaiser spoke in front of more than 300 politicians.(Bild: Illias Teirlinck)

Around 200 European regions are represented in the CoR.(Bild: Illias Teirlinck)

Kaiser's statement was not the only thing voted on.(Bild: Illias Teirlinck)

Kaiser was satisfied after his appearance.(Bild: Illias Teirlinck)

The resolution is intended to help focus on "the well-being and development opportunities of every child", meaning that children's rights and the protection of children from violence and poverty should be expanded and implemented at all levels.

"The European regions in particular have a special role to play here, as child protection is ultimately practised locally in educational and social institutions."

Authorities in the municipalities, cities and countries of the EU that ensure the welfare and safety of children should be given more intensive support - "both financially and in terms of ideas", emphasizes Kaiser. Resources such as the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) could be fully utilized for this purpose.

From Carinthia to the entire European Union
The proposals drawn up by the Carinthian governor for the CoR - such as child protection systems at local and regional level - will now be forwarded to the European Council and the EU Parliament and could influence EU legislation in the future.

The European Commission, which will publish its own recommendations on the topic next week, is likely to have already incorporated the paper adopted today, as the Commission Coordinator for Children's Rights, Marie-Cécile Rouillon, indicated in an interview with the "Krone" newspaper: "The topic is very, very important to us. Our aim was to finalize this before the EU elections in June. Children's rights are human rights and they affect many of our laws."

The exchange with regional politicians is always a reality check for us in Brussels - the cooperation with Peter Kaiser was very good.

Marie-Cécile Rouillon, Kommissionskoordinatorin für Kinderrechte

Incidentally, the CoR also discussed an annually changing Children's Capital along the lines of the European Capital of Culture - it remains to be seen where first.