Independent regulation in the contemporary Italian legal system

Abstract

According to some comparative studies, contemporary nation states exhibit an apparently impetuous worldwide general convergence toward the establishment of independent regulatory authorities (IRAs) with regard to a wide range of policy sectors (§ 2). In the Italian political system of the so-called First Republic (1948-93), the widespread attitude towards independent regulation used to be unfavourable. IRAs were affected by several obstructing factors which postponed or hindered their creation and undermined the institutionalization and the performance of the few existing ones (§ 3). In recent years some new IRAs were introduced, and some of the existing ones (which in the past had undergone attempts to eliminate them or reduce their powers) were considerably strengthened (§ 4). Is the present time, therefore, a radically new phase in the ups and downs of Italian IRAs? We argue (§ 5) that the actual situation is not unambiguous because some of the usual attitudes are still present, coupled with new ones which are also inimical to IRAs, so that the perception of their effectiveness is generally low.