ABSTRACT
The dominant view of European regionalism has largely been framed by a vanguard of assertive identity regions since the collapse of the Warsaw Pact. Another view has highlighted competitive regionalism in the search for investments and entrepreneurs to stimulate job-creation schemes following the creed of "endogenous development". The Committee of the Regions considers multilevel governance to mean coordinated action by the European Union, the Member States and local and regional authorities, based on partnership and aimed at drawing up and implementing EU policies. Policy-makers in Nordic regions are still, decidedly in favour of and prepared to take on extended roles in European structures of decision-making for their regions. Integrative regionalism is the dominant attitude. However, there are competing positions: those of state-centred regionalism, extra-Nordic regionalism and plain competitive regionalism. The role of regions in multi-level governance is clearly a divisive issue.
