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Government approves procurement code

'Substantial reform' brings Italy in line with Europe - Delrio

Redazione Ansa

(ANSA) - Rome, March 3 - The government on Thursday approved Italy's new public contracts code with a decree enacting a reform to make public procurement simpler and more transparent. Transport and Infrastructure Minister Graziano Delrio described the text as a "substantial reform aiming to finally bring the public works system up to the level of a great European country".
    The new code brings Italy in line with three EU directives and contains 217 rather than the previous 600 articles.
    It puts an end to the practice of awarding contracts to the lowest bidder, among other things.
    "The choice reconciles price and quality," Delrio said.
    The minister added that the new code regulates the question of public concessions for the first time.
    "The operational risk is now carried by the private concessionaire," Delrio explained.
    "It may seem banal, but it's a revolution," he added. The new procurement code also puts a brake on the use of extraordinary procedures, instead putting the emphasis on good programming and public utility as a criterion for the choice of works to be carried out. Further, it introduces a more incisive role for the national anti-corruption authority headed by former anti-mafia magistrate Raffaele Cantone.
    "We will make sure its new responsibilities are matched by new resources," Delrio said.
    Regarding the building of a bridge across the Strait of Messina to connect Sicily with mainland Italy, which Premier Matteo Renzi earlier said would happen "eventually", Delrio said the premier's comments were "absolutely to be shared". "We are continuing to work on priorities, without forgetting this prospect, we are absolutely on the same page," he said.
   

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