With the government’s proposed health reform, the division of tasks between the state, municipalities, and regions is being reshuffled. In the future, the regions – including the new Zealand mega-region – will only handle healthcare tasks.
Region Zealand has so far managed a significant portion of the cross-border cooperation between Denmark and Germany. The region has been responsible for participating in programs such as Interreg, which work to strengthen integration across borders and secure EU funding for local projects.
In the current Interreg program period (2021-2024), Region Zealand has managed to secure DKK 227 million for projects in Zealand and the islands. This is the highest per capita amount among all Danish regions.
Municipalities get the bill
The health reform leaves the municipalities alone with the bill for cross-border cooperation, and there simply isn’t room for it in the municipal budgets.
– We are not going to cover that expense. If funding doesn’t follow, the task won’t get done, says Mayor Holger Schou Rasmussen (Social Democrats) from Lolland Municipality.
Guldborgsund Mayor Simon Hansen (Social Democrats) also believes the last word hasn’t been spoken yet:
– There are still many things that haven’t been clarified in relation to the government’s health proposal. We can’t act based on a political proposal but only after final political agreements, writes Simon Hansen in an email to FemernReport.
– It’s a slip-up
FemernReport has inquired with the Ministry of the Interior and Health about what will happen to the cross-border projects. However, there is so much uncertainty about which minister is actually responsible that no response has been received yet.
Lolland’s mayor remains optimistic that his fellow party members in the government will find a solution:
– They haven’t been aware of it. It’s a slip-up, says Holger Schou Rasmussen.
The matter will be discussed by the regional council in Region Zealand. According to the administration’s report, the reform could place both Region Zealand and other Danish regions “at a disadvantage when it comes to securing EU funding for, for instance, healthcare and climate projects.”
