Differentiated autonomy, here is what could change in Veneto and Lombardy

Differentiated autonomy is law. But there is still a long way to go before we get to the facts, i.e. the first actual transfer of competences to a region. What is certain is that the governor of Veneto Luca Zaia and that of Lombardy Attilio Fontana, as soon as the Calderoli bill is published in the Official Gazette are ready to ask the government to open the negotiating table for the transfer of the first competences, regarding the 9 matters (out of the total 23) for which there is no Lep (Essential Level of Performance) to be guaranteed.

Specifically, there are nine matters of concurrent legislation between the State and the regions: international relations and relations with the European Union; foreign trade; professions; civil protection; complementary and supplementary pensions; coordination of public finance and the tax system; savings banks, rural banks, regional credit companies; regional land and agricultural credit institutions; organisation of justice of the peace.

In reality, it is not yet clear what the regions can actually do on these grounds. All the more so since paragraph two of Article 2 of the Calderoli law allows the prime minister to plant stakes on the transfer of matters and functions. "In order to safeguard legal or economic unity, as well as direction with respect to priority public policies, the Prime Minister," it reads, "also on the proposal of the Minister for Regional Affairs and Autonomies or of the Ministers responsible for the subject matter, may limit the object of negotiation to certain matters or areas of matters identified by the Region in the initiative act. And it is not conceivable, for example, that the government would or could cede too much space in areas such as the coordination of public finance and the tax system.

To understand how Palazzo Chigi will move, we will have to wait for the regions' requests. It will still take some time before they arrive. After the publication of the Calderoli law in the Official Gazette, the regions will have to deliberate on the basis of their statutes the requests for the transfer of competences to be sent to the government. The deed is sent to the President of the Council of Ministers and to the Minister for Regional Affairs and Autonomies who, having acquired within sixty days the assessment of the Ministers responsible for the subject matter and of the Minister of Economy and Finance, also for the purpose of identifying the necessary financial resources for any coverage, starts negotiations with the requesting Region for the approval of the agreement.

It takes even longer for matters whose attribution is 'allowed subject to the determination of the Essential Levels of Services (LEP) concerning civil and social rights, including those relating to the fundamental functions of local authorities'. Before this preliminary step, which consists in defining the minimum service standards that must be guaranteed in all regions, it remains frozen any hypothesis of transferring to the regions additional competences in 14 subjects listed by the Calderoli law, in Article 3, paragraph 3: education, environmental protection, work safety, scientific and technological research, health protection, food, sports regulations, territorial government, ports and civil airports, large transport and navigation networks, communication regulations, production, transport and national distribution of energy, as well as the valorisation of cultural and environmental heritage.