Assobalneari-Confindustria and La Base Balneare applaud the recent decisions of the Bari Regional Administrative Court, which judged the tender procedure for 21 beach establishments in Monopoli (Bari) to be illegitimate and defended the extension of the concessions to 2033. In particular, the two associations explain, «the third section of the Apulian court has published 21 separate sentences, highlighting how the tenders for maritime state concessions are not necessary, since under European law, publication on the municipal noticeboard of requests for the extension or assignment of concessions is sufficient. This is in line with the ruling of the European Court of Justice of 20 April 2023, which left wide discretion to the Member States also on the provisions aimed at concretely guaranteeing the impartiality and transparency of a selection procedure”.
«A sentence which, although positive, clearly outlines the current situation of uncertainty in which, with the procrastination of the government which to date has not yet enacted a law to keep its promise to safeguard the continuity of historic concessionaires, is not benefiting the current operators, who find themselves in great difficulty at the beginning of a summer season that has already begun and is marked by chaos”, comment Assobalneari and Base Balneare. «On a daily basis, the current concessionaires are clashing with the Municipalities which, acting independently, organize the tenders. In the various Italian regions, there are in fact several municipal administrations that have already concluded the reassignments, and many others are preparing to publish the notices”.
The lawyer underlines Nicolò Maellaro, national vice-president of La Base Balneare with Donnedamare who defended the reasons for the 21 establishments together with the lawyer Colonna: «The Monopoli case demonstrates that today, in light of European law, there is no need to launch tenders for concessions. It is therefore necessary to continue, on the one hand, a timely and technical confrontation with the European Commission, and on the other, it is urgent to obtain a legislative provision from the Italian government that prevents the Municipalities from proceeding in no particular order”.
This is echoed by Assobalneari Italia – Federturismo Confindustria and La Base Balneare with Donnedamare: «The decisions of the Apulian TAR are welcome, because they help to create clarity at a time when clarity is essential for the continuation of the bathing season. The definitive solution to the matter, however, must remain political and therefore We ask for urgent and timely clarification: perhaps in Brussels they don’t know that the bathing season has begun in Italy, the Municipalities are in disarray and everyone is inventing baseless rules. We need a pool of technical experts of primary standing in discussions with the European Commission, who are capable of dealing with the issue from a technical and administrative point of view, but also and above all economic, as the spirit of Bolkestein is economic”.
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