During the discussion at the South Aegean Regional Council on the new Code of Local Government, our positions were presented, acknowledging the positive step of consolidating more than 500 scattered laws into a single text. However, we stressed that the new Code falls short of being a genuine reform and remains largely a technical consolidation rather than a transformative change.
A meaningful reform of local government must rest on three core pillars:
1. Administrative freedom and real decentralization
There can be no true decentralization while the central state retains over 20,000 competences. Local government requires trust, along with the transfer of real responsibilities, resources, personnel, and infrastructure. We submitted a concrete proposal for transferring primary healthcare to island local authorities, in order to address the long-standing healthcare disadvantages faced by island communities.
2. Financial autonomy of local authorities
Strengthening local government cannot be achieved through new fees or additional burdens on citizens. Instead, we propose reallocating resources from the central state to local authorities, including the return of locally generated revenues such as property taxes (ENFIA), real estate-related taxes, a share of VAT, traffic fine revenues, and the resilience levy. This would allow Regions and Municipalities to plan and implement policies with stability and predictability.
3. Institutional protection of elected officials
The constant threat of criminal liability discourages capable individuals from engaging in public service and leads to administrative paralysis. Clear distinctions must be drawn between political, administrative, and criminal responsibility, with zero tolerance for lack of transparency.
We also expressed firm opposition to the electoral law changes introduced by the new Code, particularly the provision for candidates without preference votes, which undermines popular sovereignty and violates the principle of equal suffrage. Additionally, we strongly opposed the introduction of the “alternative vote” system, describing it as opaque, complex, and institutionally risky, as it distorts voters’ will and favors artificial majorities.
Finally, we submitted three specific proposals with a strong island-focused perspective:
- The explicit incorporation of the Principle of Island Equivalence into the new Code as a binding rule for all regional competences, ensuring that island residents do not face higher administrative, financial, or time costs than mainland citizens.
- The establishment of a mechanism allowing Regions to assume responsibilities of island municipalities lacking administrative or technical capacity, by decision of the Regional Council, particularly in areas such as public works, water and wastewater management, port infrastructure, and civil protection.
- The introduction of an islandness index in the allocation of Central Autonomous Resources (KAP), so that funding reflects isolation, transport costs, and the specific conditions of island Greece.
We do not envision local government as an extension of central governmental power, but as a space of democracy, pluralism, and genuine autonomy.
