Region and local authorities prepare requests to the new Europe
The list. Not only resources, but also technological neutrality, energy independence, support for supply chains. Councillor Conte: cities must be listened to
by Sara Monaci
3' min read
3' min read
Local authorities and the Lombardy Region are waiting for the outcome of the European elections and in the meantime are putting forward requests to the next Commission. Requests that, contrary to expectations, do not only concern an increase in resources, but also the ability to attract investment, the recognition of the decision-making autonomy of the territories, simplification, the easing of the stability pact, and energy autonomy. In short, resources alone are not enough.
The Region's demands
.Let's start with the Lombardy Region, where in the last two years Councillor for Economic Development Guido Guidesi has played the role of 'intermediary' with Europe. Among his workhorses is the request to the EU Commission to enhance the regions, which according to him are the expression of true production vocations, which must be respected without imposing preset methods of environmental sustainability. In Lombardy, according to Guidesi, these policies damage, for example, the automotive and chemical sectors. Basically, this is the position: Europe should declare the goals it wants to achieve in terms of CO2 reduction, but without a priori establishing how. In its appeal document to the European Commission last March, Lombardy emphasised precisely the 'definition and approval of a regulatory policy framework that would enable companies to successfully tackle the ecological and digital transition, through the identification of new instruments geared to full technological neutrality'.
To this is added a list of demands: the ability to attract investment for the redevelopment of brownfield sites; the establishment of a European guarantee fund for access to credit alongside the ECB's traditional monetary policy; the adoption of flexible and business-friendly European banking rules that must take company size into account; instruments for business access to complementary funds and private savings funds; the development of finance with a social impact and policies to support stable employment and the job placement of fragile individuals; independence in energy supply and the establishment of a European energy plan; support for strategic sectoral plans.
As far as public finance rules are concerned, an overcoming of a traditional stability pact is called for, in order to avoid debt limits, with the addition of a fair fiscal policy among member states.
For local authorities
.It is not only a question of resources, but also of political choices. This is underlined by Andrea Orlandi, who has the dual role of mayor of Rho and president of the Finance Department of Anci Lombardia. The policy of the 'new Europe' will have to focus on the environment, simplification and shared school programmes, he emphasises.
