Italy cannot enable seashore golf equipment to maintain management of the sandy shore till 2033, the European Union’s high court docket dominated on Thursday.
Whereas Italy’s seafront is public property, giant components of seashores are dotted with umbrellas, sunbeds and eating places managed by personal seashore companies that strike concessions with native authorities. Italian lawmakers in 2020 allowed these contracts run till 2033.
The Court docket of Justice mentioned that may’t occur. Seashore concessions “can’t be renewed mechanically” and should face “an neutral and clear choice process,” judges mentioned in a ruling that units out EU legislation for an Italian court docket dealing with a dispute between the nation’s competitors authority and the city of Ginosa.
Seashores are a sizzling political problem in Italy, sparking clashes final 12 months inside the coalition authorities led by former Prime Minister Mario Draghi who had solely wished to increase the concessions till the top of 2023.
Nationwide courts and native authorities, the court docket mentioned, should apply EU legislation and are required to “disapply conflicting nationwide provisions.”
The Italian Competitors and Markets Authority (AGCM) took the municipality of Ginosa to Puglia’s Regional Administrative Court docket to annul a choice to increase native contracts.
Whereas the regional court docket did rule that the transfer was incompatible with EU Directive 2006/123 on companies within the inside market, it known as on the Court docket of Justice to confirm the scope of the directive. That regional court docket should now make last choices within the case.
The case is C-348/22 Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (Municipality of Ginosa).
Giorgio Leali contributed reporting.
