Cllr Chris Holley, WLGA Spokesperson on Regeneration and Europe has pressed UK Government and European Commission officials and Members of the European Parliament on greater flexibility in EU procurement and internal market rules at a time of extreme austerity.
Speaking at a UK local government EU working Summit in Brussels, Cllr. Holley (Swansea) said:
“In these difficult economic times, local authorities can no longer only assess EU policy on the basis of whether it is good legislation, but rather on the potential cost to local councils. Current EU procurement and competition rules are acting as barriers to local government attempts to cut back on costs through increased efficiency and joint working. This includes major regional collaboration initiatives in areas where local authorities have statutory responsibility. Clarification and simplification of EU procurement legislation is urgently required. This needs to include a reassessment of current thresholds, and an exemption to State Aid rules for local authorities to collaborate.
We welcome the European Commission’s consultation on public procurement rules launched on 27th January which aims to reduce costs and administrative burdens. We will be pressing the Commission to recognise that local government simply cannot continue to provide adequate services to local communities in the current economic climate if such restrictive rules are not made more flexible.”
Whilst in Brussels, Cllr Holley also met with Welsh MEPs to present them with the key messages from local government on the future of EU funding to Wales, including agriculture and rural development funding and the Structural Funds. He also discussed the overall EU Budget principles and where the priorities of the future budget should lie.
