Fondos estructurales y política regional en la Unión Europea

The present work examines the reasons that gave rise to European Regional Policy and describes its principles and basic objectives, as well as the operational transformations it underwent from the 1988 Structural Fund reform till the approval of the Agenda 2000. Its ability to correct regional imbalances is subsequently compared with the limited ability of European Public Finance to carry out some of the functions performed by central governments in States with a federal political structure, which results in disparity between regional income levels and the corresponding tax balances. Finally, the achievements and limitations of European Regional Policy are assessed on a wide basis rather than on budgetary aspects alone.