Local government should be given direct access to EU funds to avoid centralisation at state level and empower local communities, German MEP Niklas Nienass (Greens) said in Zagreb on Wednesday.

Nienass was in Zagreb for the third conference on the EU Cohesion Policy taking place on 14-16 November.

“We want to make sure that cities have direct access to financing,” he told Hina, adding that this can be achieved if regions, and eventually citizens, have direct access to funds.

Member states want subsidiarity, which means solving a problem at the lowest instead of the state level, he said, adding that the problem of too much centralisation is that the opinions of those outside centres are not important as they are not relevant to the central administration.

Direct financing from EU funds would allow regions and cities to define their own priorities as well as citizen participation in the democratic process and help local government units to maintain their campaign promises, he said.

Due to centralisation, the implementation of the green transition depends on the intentions of the national governments, he said. “For example, the government wants to expand the LNG terminal in Croatia though EU funds. Due to centralisation, national governments decide what to do with that money.”

Nienass said the European Green Deal included the “Do no significant harm” principle so that member states would stop building the gas infrastructure and undermining the development of the green policy.

Direct financing would also improve the absorption of EU funds and reduce the influence of “dictatorships” based on fossil fuel exports, he said, adding that in Croatia direct financing would also step up the development of the renewable energy potential.

Europe must stop importing gas and all its regions should produce and share energy from the sun and the wind, which can be done with EU funds, he said, adding that Croatia has big potential for solar panels.

The next elections for the European Parliament will decide whether EU funds will be used to empower citizens or so that big companies and corrupt governments get huge money for their goals instead of citizens’ benefit, Nienass said at a press conference organised by the ORAH party, a member of the European Green Party.

ORAH president Zorislav Antun Petrovic said the allocation of EU funds in Croatia was not aligned with local government units.

“The money is given to the ministry, which disburses it within the state (because) projects surpass the potentials of local government units, which are not rich enough,” he said, adding that Croatia also has a shortage of qualified personnel for project realisation.