ROME. No extension for beach concessions. For the Council of State, they will be put out to tender when they expire on December 31, 2023. This is what can be seen from sentence 2192 of March 1, filed yesterday, which rejects the rules introduced in Parliament at the Milleproroghe decreewhich became law extending tenders and concessions to 31 December 2024, extendable “for objective reasons” to the end of 2025.
Former President of the Republic Sergio Mattarellain a letter sent to the presidents of the Chamber and Senate at the time of signing, last February 24, had censured the rules desired by the Lega and Forza Italia, endorsed by the Brothers of Italy, expressing “specific and relevant perplexities”.
Now it is the Council of State – which had already expressed itself with two sentences in 2021 – reiterates that no further extensions are possible. Italy violates the Bolkestein directive on services in the common European market which aims to encourage competition especially in those economic sectors where goods are scarce, such as the state property of Italian beaches.
Sentence 2192 of March 1 refers to an old case of an Apulian municipality, Manduria, which had extended the state-owned maritime concessions to 2033 following an appeal by some beach companies. According to the president of the sixth section of the Council of State «the automatic extension of the existing state-owned maritime concessions is in frontal contrast with the aforementioned regulation pursuant to art. 12 of directive no. 2006/123/EC, and must, consequently, be disapplied by any organ of the State”.
Della Vedova: Meloni back off
«The Government stubbornly insists on corporate decisions on seaside resorts and continues to slam against the wall. After Europe (and the Quirinal), the Council of State also rejects Meloni. At this point, backtrack on this too and proceed intelligently with the definition of the tenders». The deputy of Più Europa Benedetto Della Vedova writes it on Twitter.
Gasparri: Council of State? To err is human..
«Council of State: to err is human, to persevere is diabolical». Senator Maurizio Gasparri wrote on Twitter about the rejection by the State Council of the extension of the concessions, adding the hashtag #giùlemanidaibalneari.