The opposition and the unions were only using "political manipulation." The four regions under special administration for school size reduction (Sardinia, Umbria, Emilia-Romagna, and Tuscany) were " the only ones that failed to implement the school mergers required by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), despite having granted them two exemptions in the past two years, which cost us €16 million ."
In an interview with Corriere della Sera, Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara dismisses the controversy surrounding the appointment of special commissioners to regions that have failed to meet the school sizing requirements, and recalls the rulings that "prove us right." "Two from the Constitutional Court, plus one ordinance, six from the Council of State, and three from the Regional Administrative Court."
Valditara emphasizes that "no buildings will be closed and student services will not be affected," but "reducing the administrative tasks of managers will ensure greater efficiency." Essentially, it involves a "legal merger of two entities, but the schools will remain the same, in the same locations."
The minister also states that Sardinia, Emilia, and Tuscany have "benefited" from the current government's recalculation and that other regions have consolidated more. The sizing was agreed upon by the Draghi government with the EU Commission and became a goal of the NRRP, to which the payment of certain installments is linked. Now "there is no more time" to grant further exemptions. "If schools are not consolidated, as promised to Europe when signing the NRRP, we risk having to return part of the second and fourth installments and jeopardizing the payment of the final one. Is this what they want? "
(Unioneonline)