In Brussels the Lombardy Competitiveness Table

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Lombardy, on the strength of its economic and industrial supremacy in Italy and its leading position in Europe, is aiming to strengthen its international presence and, with this in mindthe Lombardy Region's Councillor for Economic Development, Guido Guidesi, has decided to convene, for the first time, the Lombardy Competitiveness Table, in which all the trade associations of the production and economic system participate, in Brussels. The table is called upon to approve and sign an official political-institutional document with ten proposals to be submitted to the next European Commission so that 'we can start again from the support of the productive territories by comparing and listening to their proposals; in this, the most productive region of Europe, Lombardy, wants to play a leading role,' Guidesi explained. The ten topics mentioned in the document are: investment attraction, proximity and social economy, credit, energy and supply independence, supply chains and ecosystems, manufacturing, micro-enterprises, stability pact, full technological neutrality, and tax policy. The document was supported by the production, business and credit world. The president of the Lombardy Federation of Cooperative Credit Banks, Alessandro Azzi, wrote to Councillor Guidesi to express his support for the initiative, underlining his support for the substance and the action taken by the Region.

"We are convinced that it is crucial to be present in this sort of Commission 'transition', as Europe has finally decided to address the future of its competitiveness, also in the light of the work being carried out by Mario Draghi," Guidesi said. "Our idea is that Europe will be competitive if it restarts from manufacturing territories. Hence the new strategy of creating alliances, institutional lobbies, between manufacturing territories to influence the choices of the next Commission; We are doing this because we think that the outgoing European Commission has taken surreal decisions causing serious economic damage to Europe itself, and we do not want to make the incredible mistake of those who continue to totally defend these decisions causing the end of Europe itself,' the councillor added, emphasising that 'Europe, in our opinion, can only be saved if the next Commission has a direct relationship with the manufacturing territories; hence the 'teaming up' of the most productive territories.

Looking at the numbers, Lombardy is the only Italian region with a regional competitiveness index above the EU average, like the central and northern European member states. It collects more than one third of the total in value of foreign investments on national soil and develops about one fifth of Italian net investments outside its borders; more than 60% of foreign investors in Italy, and 92 of the 100 most significant investors, are in Lombardy. In terms of international trade, last year this value reached its historical peak, touching Euro 350 billion, with a growth of 21%. Exports exceeded 162 billion euro, the highest value ever, with a growth of 19.1%. There are more than 6,400 companies owned by foreign investors, employing more than 575,000 people with a turnover of 257 billion euro. Lombardy's GDP at the end of 2023 was 5.5% higher than pre-pandemic thanks to the faster and more robust recovery recorded in the previous two years. Lombardy's recovery clearly distances the European regions that are most 'similar' to it: Catalonia's GDP is higher than in 2019 by a more limited 1.1%, Bavaria's by 0.4%, while Baden Wurttemberg's GDP is still -1% lower in 2023 compared to 2019, according to the Economy Booklet produced by Assolombarda's Study Centre.

With this in mind, the issue of autonomy becomes central for Guidesi: 'Faced with Lombardy's significant numbers, it is legitimate to think what further records we could achieve if we had the powers and resources enjoyed by our European 'cousins'. The subject of autonomy therefore becomes even more decisive and urgent, it is not an ideological discourse but an economic one,' the councillor pointed out. "An autonomous Lombardy would benefit the whole country because if the country wants to continue to be driven by Lombardy, it must put it in the same position as the others. Looking at the Continent, this translates into the 'principle of competitive fairness'; among the most important European regions, Lombardy is one of the few that cannot benefit from autonomy and this means less opportunity to support businesses than its European competitors, which in turn have the opportunity to gain new market shares at the expense of Lombardy'.