“Inter-municipality as an expression of local democracy in Europe”

Speech by Michalis Angelopoulos, Vice-President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe

16 November 2016,

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear colleagues,

First of all, I would like to thank the Mancomunitat de la Ribera Alta for their invitation to take part in this international conference, which  is of great importance for the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, which I am representing today. The Council of Europe is indeed a strong defender of inter-municipal association and we at the Congress have been actively engaged in the past years in its enhancement within the 47 European countries that are part of the Council.

Inter-municipality is not a new concept. Its expansion is deeply linked to the establishment of welfare states across Europe, especially after the Second World War. In some countries such as France, inter-municipal reforms can even be traced down to the 19th century. It is also a right that is enshrined in the 1985 European Charter of Local Self-Government. The Charter supports local authorities to form consortia in order to carry out tasks of common interest and even promotes co-operation between local authorities from different states.

The practical implementation of inter-municipality across the 47 European states that are part of the Council varies from one country to another. This is something we have been very careful of in the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, especially when working recently on our report on metropolitan areas that was adopted at the Congress’ last session in October 2016.

This diversity in the structure of inter-municipal associations depends on specific legal provisions that differ across countries or even between regions within a given country. For instance the Spanish Constitution gives a role to its autonomous communities in developing the concept of inter-municipality inside their territory. Therefore, each community can favour or on the contrary slow down its development. Differences in the political life, in the geography and in the demography also have impact in the structure of these co-operations. What we have observed is the development of a unique and a broad range of inter-municipal associations across Europe.

Inter-municipality has become more and more present in recent years and may well prove to be the best solution to respond to today’s new challenges. This is partly a response to growing financial pressure on municipalities that have to make more effective use of their limited means to meet increasing social demands. These demands come from a local population that is becoming more and more mobile, diverse and clustered.

In Denmark for instance, inter-municipal cooperation is crucial in allowing local governments to manage specific tasks such as public transport and certain social services that they otherwise wouldn’t be able to finance individually. In Poland, inter-municipality has also allowed the touristic and energy development of certain areas. Five municipalities from the region of Lublin took for example part in a partnership called “Dolina Zielawy” jointly financing the construction of municipal roads as well as taking part in common clean energy projects with the installation of more than 900 solar energy installations on both public and private buildings.

Inter-municipal association could therefore be a case of an old method proving to be the best solution to a modern problem. For many local authorities today it is becoming less and less of an optional way of working and more and more of a pressing need.  Bringing municipalities together is a logical solution to a dispersed an often unequal distribution of resources. It can also prove to be a more flexible tool for responding to new policy areas that require coordination without having to go through heavy restructuration of a country’s administrative system.

Inter-municipality associates two values that are dear to us at the Congress: autonomous local self-governance and efficient governance. Indeed, it addresses the issue of economic scale and can be an effective response to rising market pressures on local governments.

On the other hand, it doesn’t imply a permanent transfer or a loss of competences and allows a form of control over the decision-making and services that result from this cooperation. This is how local democracy is maintained as compared to other solutions to the current challenges faced by municipalities, such as privatization, centralisation or municipal mergers. It is about having as much local democracy and efficiency as possible and about staying as relevant and as modern as possible.

By raising municipalities’ own investment capacities, it allows locally-needed projects to emerge. New benefits are gained by municipalities when they work together. The Mancomunitat de la Robera Alta for example plays a crucial role in creating debates on issues directly affecting citizens living in the region, be it welfare or specific cultural topics such as the need to promote the local language. In this sense, inter-municipal association strengthens local democracy by staying as close to the citizens as possible. It gives life to the principle of subsidiarity and combines social and economic efficiency.

The sense of solidarity that this brings, together with the fact that decisions are taken by a group of elected municipal councils also reduces the levels of corruption, with lesser use of personal connections when putting in place a new project. The fight against corruption is another major topic of concern for us at the Congress and we have been involved in the past years in various projects to tackle it. Inter-municipality could therefore be seen as the best option, especially as municipalities exercise primordial competences be it urbanism, housing, transport, economic development, cultural and sport infrastructures.

We are aware of the criticisms accusing inter-municipal associations of being a form of elitist governance lacking transparency. However, these issues are something we can work on and that the Congress is willing to help tackle inside the member states of the Council. Transparency and the incorporation of citizen participation in municipal and inter-municipal structures are aspects that can be improved. Indeed, inter-municipality cooperation is like any other relationship, it requires efforts. 

Ladies and gentlemen, Dear colleagues,

The 19th century was the century of nation-states, the 20th century the century of international organizations and the 21st century will be the century of cities and municipalities. We, at the Congress and at the Council of Europe are wishing to assist and support the development of inter-municipal associations that we consider to be the best option to adapt to today’s new challenges. 

Thank you for your attention,