Dear flights, Marano (M5s) on Antitrust investigation: “Competition is key to solving the problem”

The regional deputy intervenes on the Authority's objections: "Regional government should work in tandem with Rome to ensure greater transparency on prices".

“Instead of organizing trips of hope for Sicilians returning home for the holidays or vacations – which have only served as advertisements in newspapers – or of focusing on quick fixes such as refunds at risk of fraud, the regional government, in agreement with the government of Rome, would do well to ensure that structural solutions are implemented to protect citizens by guaranteeing greater competition that can finally rebalance the market, thus lowering fares”.

This is stated by Jose Marano, M5S regional deputy and vice-president of the Environment, Territory and Mobility commission of the Sicilian Regional Assembly.

“We need competition on the high cost of flights,” the regional parliamentarian continues, “I have always said so and I am happy that now the Antitrust has confirmed it. Months ago the Authority said that there were no anomalies in prices, today instead it has detected critical issues regarding the transparency of the offer. An opacity that prevents adequate comparability of prices for air transport services and that is bad for competition and for consumers, especially Sicilian ones, forced to pay huge sums to return home during the holidays.”

“Today we have confirmation that the policy adopted by the Schifani government has been a failure and has exclusively benefited the airlines, which have not reduced prices in the slightest, taking advantage instead of the regional discount to continue to have their profits guaranteed,” Marano concludes.

“We welcome – concludes Marano – the news that the Antitrust has started a discussion with the European Commission on the initiatives to be adopted, but Rome and Palermo must not be spectators but rather participate as protagonists, looking at a single objective: the resolution of a problem that has been exasperating Sicilian citizens for too long, and not only them”.