Breweries, bakeries and brides: Where Italy invested its EU billions

Breweries, bakeries and brides: Where Italy invested its EU billions

Wedding gown makers had been one of several astonishing recipients of EU funds that are structural. Office of Public Affairs/Flickr

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The EU promised the south of Italy billions to market research and innovation, but, as EURACTIV Germany states, the amount of money ended up being used on some projects that are strange…

What do a wear that is bridal in Puglia, Fiat, mobile provider Telecom and a Calabrian cinema all have as a common factor? The clear answer is very simple: EU structural capital help.

Between 2007 and 2013, Brussels pumped around Ђ6 billion in to the south of Italy, cash which was meant to support “research and innovation activities into the four parts of Puglia, Calabria, Sicily and Campania”, therefore as promote “social and development” that is economic.

Around Ђ300,000, plus a further Ђ100,000 of cash from Rome, had been provided into the Calabrian city of Marzi, when you look at the toe of Italy. The settlement that is small the hometown of leading cinematographer Mauro Fiore, whom took house the Oscar this year for their work with the greatly successful movie Avatar.

To capitalise in the success of their many famous son, Marzi proposed to construct a centre for cinematography and filmography. The income arrived, however the social centre, couple of years past its proposed construction date, continues to be perhaps maybe not completed.

However it is mail order wives not merely a concern of as soon as the building is going to be completed, more basically, it really is a concern of whether Marzi would benefit economically from actually the centre.

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The European Parliament will necessitate a rise towards the EU budget today (6 July), for 2014-2020. With all the refugee crisis, faltering investment and high youth jobless, they will have no shortage of persuading arguments. EURACTIV France reports.

It’s not the only illustration of odd uses of EU cash, as demonstrated by Italian mag Le Scienze, which completed a report underneath the name European Funds, Italian secrets.

Analysis into how EU funding is really utilized in the south yielded some interested outcomes. Cash meant to market innovation and research fundamentally wound up supporting, amongst others, sleep and morning meal owners, automobile washes, mattress manufacturers, breweries, your retirement houses, bakeries, mills, bridal use outlets, furniture manufacturers and mineral water bottlers.

Additionally it is perhaps maybe perhaps not unusual, based on the study, that the tasks at issue is not examined, given that funds are delivered to one-man operations without any connection that is internet they’ve been registered at details that don’t exist.

Le Scienze additionally unearthed that major banking institutions, universities and large-scale organizations, like Fiat, have actually benefitted through the money. Fundamentally however, the good aftereffects of the funds in many cases are perhaps maybe maybe not obvious.

Eligibility criteria, the way the billions are distributed and assessing the way the funds are employed are perhaps not the duty of this European Commission. Alternatively, it’s the government that is italian through its training, research and economic development ministries that determine. Whenever Le Scienze provided those authorities the opportunity to react to its findings no response ended up being forthcoming.

Relating to German MEP Inge GrдЯle (EPP), that is chair for the European Parliament’s Committee on Budgetary Control, the EU just partly verifies the tasks. GrдЯle added that Italy, one of several founding people associated with the EU, has regularly fallen foul of EU budget execution guidelines throughout the last 2 full decades.

Mediterranean embraces eco start-ups

Within the Mediterranean area, environmental and sustainable initiatives are being started by revolutionary people. It really is hoped their company methods and efforts will trickle-down to culture it self. EURACTIV’s partner El Paнs – Planeta Futuro reports.

By the end of 2013, the institutions that are european on a reform of structural funds for the 2014-2020 duration, underneath the leadership of then Commissioner for Regional Policy, Johannes Hahn. The contract ended up being “a big advance on the road to offering the EU the mandatory tools to bolster the European economy,” said Hahn at that time.

Structural financing totals some Ђ325 billion, with cohesion funds over the top; Ђ80 billion was made designed for innovation and research.

One of many improvements that are main by the reform is the fact that user states must now inform you just just just what goals and objectives have already been accomplished through the money, also being obligated to determine implementation progress.

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