Ahead of the adoption of her opinion on the 'Collaborative economy and online platforms: a shared view of cities and regions' at the CoR December plenary session, we met CoR rapporteur Benedetta Brighenti, Vice-Mayor of Castelnuovo Rangone (PES/Italy).
In June 2016, the European Commission issued the long-awaited guidelines on a European agenda for the collaborative economy. What is your opinion of the proposals that are on the table from the point of view of cities and regions?
These guidelines present the state of play and paint a picture of the Commission's thinking on this issue. I understand that this was quite an exercise since so many Commission directorates are involved in this topic. I also know that the Commission remains vigilant on this matter and is prepared to listen to other parties.
Now, when you ask me about content, I must say that I was disappointed not to find any significant policy proposal in the guidelines. I would have expected the Commission to produce a minimum of rules. There is a degree of urgency here, because there is a risk of regulatory fragmentation with regard to the collaborative economy, both between and within Member States. Second, while excessive regulatory measures may hinder innovation, the absence of regulatory measures can create uncertainty that may inhibit investments in and the development of the sector. In my view, the aim here is not to regulate what is already regulated. We have to build a new single market for the collaborative economy. And finally, I think that introducing clear EU-level rules which uphold the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality would give European start-ups the chance to grow and be more competitive on the world stage. As the European Parliamentary Research Service has stressed in a recent analysis, account should also be taken of the cost of non-Europe in the sharing or collaborative economy.
The Commission Work Programme for 2017 presented on 25 October remains silent on the collaborative economy. How will you make your voice heard in the coming months in order to push for more legal certainty?
First, I will have to follow up on the proposals contained in the CoR opinion, such as the identification of "thresholds" for access, both "qualitative" and "quantitative", to determine the point until which a provider remains a non-trader and a "peer", and thus not subject to any market access requirements. The CoR opinion also points to the need to review elements of the Services Directive such as the local and regional dimension of "overriding reasons relating to the public interest" or the question of its scope in relation to "transport" services.
I believe that it is very important that the CoR call for a "forum of collaborative economy cities" to be set up in order to share experience and exchange good practice. This forum should involve European organisations and networks active in the local and regional dimension of the collaborative economy and liaise with the relevant thematic partnerships of the Urban Agenda for the EU.
Our main target for the follow-up on these various points will obviously be the European Parliament report drafted in the IMCO commission by my compatriot Nicola Danti (S&D).
We also expect a number of judicial decisions to be taken by the European Court of Justice by the summer of 2017.
Even though the Commission's Work Programme does not address this issue, we expect that from a European perspective, 2017 will be still more intense for the collaborative economy. And you can be sure that we will make the CoR's voice heard!
