For the productive sector, introducing the free market into public services means greater productivity and increased employment. The conference organised by Confindustria Lombardia and Confindustria Pavia was addressed, among others, by the President of the Antitrust Authority, Giovanni Pitruzzella

Milan, 8 May 2017 – “Liberalising for growth: services as a driver of economic development” was the title of the conference organised by Confindustria Lombardia and Confindustria Pavia, held this afternoon at the Confindustria Lombardia headquarters in Milan, in the presence of the President of the Italian Competition Authority, Giovanni Pitruzzella.

“With the #Lombardia2030 strategic plan, Confindustria Lombardia has set out to act on the drivers of competitiveness capable of ensuring development and widespread prosperity, based on the premise that business competitiveness cannot be separated from the growth of the regions and society in which they operate,” stated the President of Confindustria Lombardia, Alberto Ribolla. “Fortunately, as the data from the Cerved ‘SME Centre-North 2017’ report also show, Lombardy boasts figures that make it the most competitive region in Italy and one of the most competitive in Europe (250 billion in turnover, 57 billion in value added, and 67 billion in financial debt). To continue competing in constantly changing global markets, however, it is necessary to remove the persistent obstacles that limit competitiveness, and liberalisation is fully among the enabling levers identified in our strategic plan, as well as being a tool preparatory to the spread of business culture within society,” concluded Alberto Ribolla.

“We are truly lagging behind on liberalisation,” commented the President of Confindustria Pavia, Alberto Cazzani. “Unfortunately, the exhortations from international institutions and the Authority to introduce market dynamics into public services have gone unheeded. Confindustria’s commitment today is indicative of how urgent it is to address this issue. We are convinced that a decisive liberalisation of services could provide a formidable boost to the country’s growth. The Ministry of Economic Development estimates a 3.3% increase in GDP over five years, while the Bank of Italy quantifies long-term employment growth at 8%. Furthermore, a serious liberalisation process would make public administration more efficient, with immediate positive effects on the regions, which would appear more competitive and attractive for investment. However, liberalisation must be done well and according to common sense. Tenders are still few, essentially non-contestable, sometimes designed ad hoc for public subsidiaries, and with a tendency to favour formalistic aspects over substantive ones. On the contrary, a planned process of tenders is needed, which makes services contestable with transparent and simple rules.

The conference, moderated by the editor of Il Foglio, Claudio Cerasa, also featured contributions from Alberto Mingardi, Director of the Istituto Bruno Leoni; Alessandro de Nicola, President of The Adam Smith Society; Ennio Lucarelli, President of Confindustria Servizi Innovativi e Tecnologici; Luciano Milanese, President of Cisambiente; and Giuseppe Francesco Vinella, President of Anav. The Director General of Confindustria, Marcella Panucci, provided the concluding remarks.

Attachments

• CS_Liberalizzazioni_8mag17.pdf