Calling for adequate funding and support from the European Commission to mitigate the challenges faced by regions heavily reliant on fossil fuels and energy-intensive industries in the next EU policy cycle, President Marco Marsilio states that "In order to work, the double green and digital transition must be socially just and in no way jeopardise the economic development of our territories".

President Marsilio, the recently appointed Committee of the Regions' (CoR) rapporteur for the just transition presented his working document to the Commission for Territorial Cohesion Policy and EU Budget (COTER), noting that the EU's ambitious transition to a sustainable and climate-neutral economy has "deepening implications for European regions, workers, industries and society in general". Such a significant socio-economic transformation, especially in regions dependent on fossil fuels and energy-intensive industries, represents a very serious challenge that threatens the traditional economic base of many regions, he highlighted.

President Marsilio expressed his determination to draft a CoR opinion urging the next European Commission to allocate the necessary funds so that the regions most affected by the double transition are not left alone to deal with a phenomenon that could have dramatic consequences for their economic and industrial fabric. Mr Marsilio continued by stating that in the ecological transition currently being discussed in Europe, the value of technological neutrality must be unconditionally affirmed. "Failing to do so would be a serious and dangerous cultural fiasco, which would have inevitable repercussions on Europe's industry", he warned.

In this context, Mr Marsilio cited the challenges faced by the automotive sector like the growing competition from Chinese manufacturers who can count on heavy state subsidies. "Europe is already seriously lagging behind in terms of competitiveness compared to other major international players, and instead of working to close this gap by protecting its own industrial excellence, it seems to us that it continues to shoot itself in the foot with certain very questionable decisions such as directing the future of the car industry towards the use of electric vehicles only. They are currently produced largely outside Europe using critical raw materials that the EU relies heavily on third countries for", concluded President Marsilio.