Beach resort managers on the island have earned another three years of concessions "thanks" to Cyclone Harry . This is provided that the municipalities and the owners themselves prepare an investment plan to address the damage caused by erosion and severe weather.

This is provided for by an amendment signed by Romeo (Lega) to the Commissioners' decree law approved by the Senate Environment Committee .

The provision establishes that beach concessions will remain in force until September 30, 2030 (or March 2031 if "objective" difficulties arise in the tenders), in areas where "coastal damage caused by erosion" has occurred and in the event of "exceptional meteorological events," such as those that hit Sardinia, Calabria, and Sicily last January , for which a state of national emergency was declared.

The current concession deadline, set for September 30, 2027, has been extended by three years. This isn't the first extension that has delayed the implementation of the Bolkestein Directive , an EU directive heavily contested by beach operators that requires concessions to be put out to tender, prohibiting automatic renewals.

The provision

The amendment approved today in the Commission reads: "Due to the damage to the coastal strip caused by the process of progressive coastal erosion, as well as by the exceptionally intense meteorological events that particularly affected the territory of the Calabria region, the Autonomous Region of Sardinia and the Sicily region in January 2026 , for which a state of emergency was declared by resolution of the Council of Ministers of 26 January 2026, in order to encourage immediate interventions to make the area safe and mitigate coastal erosion, including with medium-term private investments that allow the regular start of summer tourism activities ", the concessions "may continue to be effective until 30 September 2030, or until 31 March 2031 in the event of disputes or objective difficulties in calling for tenders" .