The mayor of Badalona (Barcelonès Nord), Xavier Garcia Albiol, was appointed by the Governing Board of the FEMP (Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces) as a member of the Council of Europe and the Committee of the Regions representing the town councils. It is the first time that a mayor of Badalona has been elected by the entity that brings together Spanish city councils as a representative of two of the most important European organizations.
The mayor pointed out that “it is an honor and a great responsibility to access, for the first time, as a main actor, the European decision-making areas that directly affect cities and municipalities.” This institutional responsibility on behalf of the town councils of all of Spain “will also allow me to have Badalona be present on the front line of the places where issues of the importance of European funds, the environment, sustainability, mobility, and everything are discussed. that affect European municipalities,” the mayor concluded.
The mayor of Badalona has been appointed full member of the Council of Europe and substitute of the European Committee of the Regions. The Council of Local and Regional Powers is based in Strasbourg, with 306 members from 46 countries and representing 130,000 local entities. In Spain there are only six members representing all the town councils.
The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) is made up of 329 members representing local and regional authorities from the twenty-seven EU Member States. They meet in plenary session in Brussels to debate political priorities and adopt opinions on EU legislation.
Xavier Garcia Albiol will also act as a representative of the town councils in the National Commission of Local Administration, an organ of the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service. He will be the representative of the town councils in the collaboration body between the general administration of the state and the local administration. He has been named one of the 13 members representing local administrations.
