Beach club operators in Italy brace as EU competition rules threaten their business

Beach clubs have a significant impact on Italy’s economy, as the tourism sector accounts for around 6% of the country’s total GDP.

Transcript

00:00In Fiumicino, a stretch of coastline an hour's drive away from Rome, beach concessions and

00:05the lack of a national law that regulates them as required by the EU are the main talking

00:10points among local beach establishments.

00:13But as opposed to calling a strike as others have done, around 10 local business owners

00:18have teamed up in the event of public tenders that could soon stripe them off their licenses.

00:23It's been over 10 years that Italy has failed to comply with the EU directive which aims

00:28to promote competitiveness in the sector by freeing up the market.

00:32And with concessions expiring at the end of the year, time is running out.

00:58Some trade organisations have trust in the government's efforts to settle the dispute.

01:28Beach club operators are divided over how to navigate the issue. Meanwhile, discussions

01:44between Italy and the European Commission are still ongoing. We asked an expert to break

01:48down such complex scenario and its potential consequences.

01:51Eleonora Poli works for a think tank that focuses on EU policies and has covered the

01:56issue.

01:57Italy is at risk of severe sanctions. At the same time, it's not just a problem of

02:02the current government, of the Meloni government. It's a problem that Italy has been dealing

02:06with for many years. There is a need for a law or a rule that is uniform at the national

02:13level, that somehow gives way to a series of rules on how to renew these concessions

02:21with a specific duration, with clear rules, with clear conditions that can be applied

02:27by all municipalities, all municipalities and all regions.

02:31With a few months left before the year draws to a close, beach club operators are expected

02:36to continue their fight. Giorgia Orlandi for EU news in Fiumicino.