The political cycle that began with the elections to the European Parliament implies a new definition of the priorities on the European agenda. In this context, the Government of Catalonia has drawn up reports in which it lays the key messages on issues that it considers to be priorities for the European institutions. The aim is to convey the Catalan Government's position to Brussels, with a view to the hearings that the European commissioners will hold from September onwards, after the election of President von der Leen in July.

This action is part of the strategy that the Government of Catalonia has carried out this term of office to relaunch its advocacy work in European Union affairs. The reports sent to Brussels have been prepared in coordination with all Catalan Government ministries and reflect the concerns of social and economic stakeholders, as well as the conclusions of the conference 'EU investments in strategic projects: a view from Catalonia' that the Government of Catalonia and the Representation of the European Commission in Barcelona organised in the city in June.

Some of the issues on which the Catalan Government wanted to send key messages are the official status of Catalan, migration and asylum policies, water management, competitiveness and reindustrialisation policy, economic governance, equal treatment and non-discrimination policies, and sexual and reproductive rights. The Catalan Government's positions will be further developed as the European Commissioners' hearings in September draw closer.

These efforts to influence EU policy build on what the Catalan Government already did after the European elections on the strategic agenda of the Council of the European Union.

The official status of Catalan, "key" to bringing the EU closer to its citizens

The Government of Catalonia has sent the European Commission some observations on the priority objective of making Catalan official in European institutions, a proposal that must be adopted unanimously by the Member States in the Council of the European Union. In line with the diplomatic offensive carried out over the last year, the Catalan Government insists that it is a "key" measure to "bring the European Union closer to its citizens" and that, at the moment, the linguistic "rights" of 10 million people are being "violated".

Over the past year, the defence of the official status of Catalan in the European institutions has marked relations with Brussels and with all the Member States of the Union, and the Executive intends to make it a central issue in the political cycle that is beginning.

A migration and asylum policy respectful of human rights

The Catalan Government is critical of the current European pact on migration and asylum, and advocates rethinking migration policies towards a "truly comprehensive approach that goes beyond a purely security-focused perspective", avoiding falling into this single narrative, and developing policies that "mitigate the causes" of forced migration.

Among many demands, it advocates that, in the distribution of funds from the new European budget for the period 2027-2034, account should be taken of the governments closest to citizens with competence in reception and inclusion policies.

Integrated water management and the creation of the Mediterranean macro-region

In the context of a climate emergency with consequences such as the drought that the Mediterranean region in particular is suffering, the Catalan Government is calling for a "comprehensive approach" to water management at European level, with greater investment in research and innovation, that responds to the objective of respecting the diversity of ecosystems and biodiversity and that recognises the necessary multilevel governance.

It also calls on the European Commission to support the creation of the Macro-regional Strategy for the Mediterranean, a framework for cooperation of all actors in the Mediterranean basins to coordinate and maximise initiatives to respond to the climate emergency in this region.

The Government of Catalonia defends the need to introduce the Euro-Mediterranean perspective in all European policies, because if the shared challenges of the Mediterranean are not addressed jointly, the European Union will also suffer. In this regard, the Executive welcomes the proposal for a Commissioner for the Mediterranean.

Competitiveness and re-industrialisation: improving governance of European funds

Following the conclusions of the main research and business stakeholders at the conference "EU investments in strategic projects: a view from Catalonia', organised by the Government of Catalonia and the Representation of the European Commission in Barcelona in June, the Government of Catalonia proposes a series of measures to maximise the transformative impact of European funds across the continent.

Among the main proposals is a common demand made by Catalan society, which the Catalan Government will pass on to Brussels: harmonise, simplify and make the rules for accessing European funds more flexible. Moreover, the Catalan Government insists on modifying the system of governance so that governments with significant legislative powers, such as Catalonia's, are involved in the process of defining and implementing European funds, and so that a greater and better impact is obtained from EU resources.

Economic governance: "fair" fiscal targets

The Catalan Government is critical of the current system for setting the fiscal deficit ceiling, as it does not take into account territorial disparities within Member States. For this reason, it calls for the European Commission to demand a "fair" implementation of fiscal objectives within Member States and for territories with legislative powers such as Catalonia to have the "necessary fiscal space" to implement the public policies set by law.

An "ambitious" EU budget

The Catalan Government also calls for "ambition" in the next EU budget, which will be for the period 2028-2034. It therefore makes proposals to give budgetary weight to ecological transition and sustainability; to social cohesion and social justice; to development cooperation, especially in the Mediterranean; to re-industrialisation, innovation and competitiveness; to the promotion and protection of rights and freedoms; and a "common, fair, sustainable and more simplified" agricultural and rural development policy.

Steps forward with the policy of equal treatment and non-discrimination

In this area, the Government of Catalonia proposes the approval of a horizontal Directive on Equal Treatment and Intersectional Non-Discrimination. It also expresses its concern about setbacks in equal treatment in some EU Member States due to the rise of anti-rights groups and calls on the European institutions to include hate speech and hate crimes in the list of European crimes.

Universality of sexual and reproductive rights, including in the EU

The Government of Catalonia is making its position on sexual and reproductive rights known to the European institutions, and among other demands is that these rights be included in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union to guarantee their universal access and "in all their dimensions": from contraceptives to comprehensive sexuality education, menstrual equity and the eradication of obstetric violence.