Local reflections of austerity in the era of the Recovery and Resilience Device

Abstract

The paper reconstructs how the European Union’s recovery policies with respect to the Covid-19 pandemic have affected the spending autonomy of local authorities. The analysis starts from the relationship between European Union budgetary policies – especially after the strengthening of austerity following the 2008 crisis – and local autonomy, also understood in a substantive sense, as the possibility of implementing policies consistent with fundamental rights and in particular social rights, through the redressing of existing inequalities between and within territories. After a general reconstruction of this relationship, the research examines the innovations introduced by post-pandemic measures, with particular reference to the Next Generation EU (NGEU). These latter profiles will be examined alongside those that are instead in continuity with the pre-existing scenario. The final objective is to observe the impact on local autonomy, with specific reference to the use of resources for social and substantive equality purposes