Where this approach has been used it eases the financial burden on local and regional authorities and improves implementation;

The Norwegian authorities referred to several EU Member States which have introduced refund schemes for the VAT costs on non-taxable or tax-exempt activities for local governments.

the rent it pays for its official premises should cover the cost of construction, upkeep and use, but should not in any way contain a profit margin for the host country or local or regional authorities in that country; equally, it is also customary that any public land made available by a Member State for the purpose of hosting an EU institution is granted to the said institution free and unencumbered; it has to be conceded, however, that none of this was contractually laid down because of the good relationship with the City of Strasbourg as a supposedly non-profit-seeking public body; besides, there are no legal provisions prohibitin ...[+++]g a state or local or regional authority from making a profit; takes the view, however, that the City of Strasbourg's approach is discourteous, to say the very least, since it is contrary to rules on hospitality towards international institutions;

the rent it pays for its official premises should cover the cost of construction, upkeep and use, but should not in any way contain a profit margin for the host country or local or regional authorities in that country; equally, it is also customary that any public land made available by a Member State for the purpose of hosting an EU institution is granted to the said institution free and unencumbered; it has to be conceded, however, that none of this was contractually laid down because of the good relationship with the City of Strasbourg as a supposedly non-profit-seeking public body; besides, there are no legal provisions prohibitin ...[+++]g a state or local or regional authority from making a profit; takes the view, however, that the City of Strasbourg's approach is discourteous, to say the very least, since it is contrary to rules on hospitality towards international institutions;

1.14 considers that the fuller recognition of the local and regional dimension within the new architecture of the Union will both improve its effectiveness and its linkages with citizens: European integration should entail political decision-making where account is taken of the views of local and regional authorities, as it is these spheres of governance that are responsible for the transposition and implementation of a large proportion of EU legislation and policy, and are closest to the citizen so can therefore contribute substantially to the quality of Union legislation; [Article I-5] however states that consultation cannot substitut ...[+++]e responsibility and accountability of regions and local authorities within their respective spheres of competence which have to be respected; they must be given the chance to prove that they can, according to the internal provisions of the respective Member State, sufficiently achieve the objectives of the intended action;

These should include local authorities, schools, universities, other learning providers and related services such as information, guidance and counselling, research centres, enterprises (as part of their corporate social responsibility), public employment services, NGOs working at the local level (e.g. voluntary and community organisations), representatives of particular groups of (potential) learners [22], and actors dealing with gender equality issues;