Astrid Pérez re-elected as CALRE president

The Parliament of the Canary Islands hosted the plenary session of the Conference of European Regional Legislative Assemblies (CALRE), a key gathering of European regional parliamentarians that brought together presidents of autonomous and regional parliaments from Austria, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Germany and Portugal.

During the session, Astrid Pérez, president of the Parliament of the Canary Islands, was unanimously re‑elected as president of CALRE, renewing the confidence of Europe’s regional legislatures after a first year marked by institutional cooperation, defence of the regions’ role and a stronger international profile for the organisation.

Concerns Over the EU Multi‑annual Financial Framework

In her opening remarks, Pérez warned that the upcoming EU Multi‑annual Financial Framework (MFF) could severely affect ultra‑peripheral regions, especially the Canary Islands. She highlighted the importance of current European instruments that have sustained strategic sectors and ensured the archipelago’s territorial cohesion.

“We are not only talking about numbers,” Pérez said. “A reduction in these funds would mean less support for agriculture, a weaker financial backbone for essential services, and a real step back from the previous framework that would jeopardise territorial cohesion.”

Current European Funding for the Canary Islands

• €1.878 billion from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (POSEI) for the maintenance of the primary sector.
• €673 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund for essential public services.
• €88 million in fisheries compensations to offset structural over‑costs linked to the islands’ ultra‑peripheral status.

Pérez stressed that any reduction of these specific allocations would lead to a significant loss of resources, directly impacting the Canary Islands’ competitiveness, connectivity, health services and strategic cooperation programmes such as Interreg MAC.

Defending Regional Equality

Pérez argued that the EU’s new priorities must not translate into the disappearance of compensations for the Canary Islands, as doing so would undermine the principle of equality enshrined in Article 349 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

She reaffirmed the Canary Islands’ commitment to the common front of Ultra‑peripheral Regions and highlighted CALRE’s role as a crucial platform for defending subsidiarity and multilevel governance. In this context, Pérez called for a continued push for a Europe of regions that guarantees cohesion, equal opportunities and respect for territorial diversity.