Brussels sends infringement letter to Rome over birth boost, beach policy

1 year ago 38

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government’s decision to issue a bonus for large families when they have a newborn, as well as its failure to comply with the Bolkestein Services Directive regarding concessions for occupying Italian beaches, has caught the attention of the European Commission, which has already begun infringement proceedings.

On Thursday, the Commission sent a letter with a reasoned opinion to the Italian government contesting the introduction of the single cheque and the government’s persistent failure to comply with the Bolkestein Directive on beach concessions.

This is the second stage of the infringement procedure already launched against Italy in 2020 for failure to comply with the Directive before referral to the Court of Justice of the EU, in addition to the reasoned opinion rejecting the single cheque.

In March, Italy introduced a measure to support large families and boost the country’s sharply declining birth rate with a one-off payment – which the European Commission says amounts to discrimination that “violates European law because it does not treat European citizens equally”.

The infringement letter also contains the EU executive’s reasoned opinion on the beach concessions dossier, highlighting the failure to comply with the Bolkestein Directive, which stipulates that concessions to occupy Italian beaches cannot be automatically renewed but must be subject to an impartial and transparent selection procedure.

“Our preference is always to find an agreement with the member states rather than to go to court. This is a reasoned opinion and does not prejudge the ongoing negotiations we will have with the Italian authorities,” said a Commission spokeswoman.

Meloni and trade commissioner Thierry Breton met in April to discuss the Bolkestein Directive. Still, the Commission decided only to warn Italy with a notice reiterating that delays in implementing the Directive were “a source of concern”.

Italy has two months to respond to the Commission and comply with EU rules.

The issue was already discussed in the Italian Council of Ministers on Tuesday. Meloni is likely to try to discuss with the Commission the next steps Italy needs to take to avoid the infringement procedure from having its effect.

On 5 October, the technical roundtable on beach mapping requested by the government concluded that about 33% of state-owned coastal areas (1/3 of the total) are under concession, while 67% are free.

The Meloni government is reportedly working on an interim regulation to strike a balance between compliance with the Bolkestein Directive and its desire to protect operators.

(Federica Pascale | Euractiv.it)