24/02/2017 - The future Law on business areas will cover a legislative gap that has existed until now, in addition to improve the quality of industrial land in the Valencian Community. But we need to go one step further. I want to propose to the Regional Goverment the creation of a fixed annual budget line from which those municipalities that truly bet on their polygons can benefit.

In Paterna, a town that has more than 5 million square meters for industrial land, with 5 business areas and more than 2,800 companies, we deserve to be recognized the work being done.

These characteristics, by themselves, would allow us to achieve the qualification foreseen in the Strategic Industrial Municipal Law in terms of what is regulated in the Preliminary Draft and this distinction can help us attract more investments in our municipality, since it supposes the recognition of our high industrial level and, above all, the quality of the infrastructures and services of our business areas.

If someone thinks that some political force can be left out without weakening the legislative framework that strengthens our industry, they are very wrong. An autonomous pact of the Valencian industry is urgent, and the longer it takes, the worse it will be. It is time to sit down, to negotiate and to have a high-mindedness, so that any change in government does not harm the fundamental pillar of our economy: the industry, a true engine generating employment in the medium and long term.

In addition, it would be highly desirable for those City Councils that, like Paterna, have committed themselves and continue to commit themselves, both budgetary and administratively, with their business areas, - and therefore already have quality industrial land in terms of the future Law and the fiscal incentives in the matter of the Construction and Works Tax (ICIO) established in it-, enjoy a certain positive discrimination in access to the calls for aid from the Ministry established in article 38 of the preliminary draft.

It is about recognizing this effort and making it possible for us to continue improving the infrastructures and services of our business areas and especially with their modernization, since in addition to investing in the maintenance of business parks, it is vitally important to allocate resources to the modernization of these areas, betting on new technologies to incorporate them into Industry 4.0 and turn them into smart polygons.

The regional agreements and pacts have to be imposed because they will benefit us when going to Madrid to demand infrastructures such as the Mediterranean Corridor. Today I also claim, in addition to an agreement for this fundamental axis, an economic pact for the Valencian industry. We must go to Madrid with a define plan, otherwise they will continue to treat us like the happy Levante who is in trouble.

As for the future law on business areas, pioneer in Spain, I am convinced that it will stimulate economic activity, will serve to create employment and will try to alleviate the budgetary difficulties that municipalities have suffered. In the preliminary draft it is established that the town councils must sign an agreement with the new figure of the "Entities for Management and Modernization of Industrial Areas", in which the commitments made by each of the parties are specified in terms of improve the conservation, maintenance, surveillance, cleaning and provision of basic services.

On the other hand, proper management of business areas requires mandatory business contributions, since it would not be fair that only member companies voluntarily contribute to finance actions that benefit all members of the business area. The Preliminary Draft establishes the obligation of belonging to the Management Entity that extends to all the owners of plots and, subsidiarily, if so agreed, to the lessee companies. This eliminates the serious damages that the existence of companies that benefited without contributing in any way to the management of business areas.

In Paterna we have been betting for a long time on a clear municipal industrial development policy. We have recently launched the website www.paternaciudaddeempresas.es recently presented at the first Paterna City Business Awards Gala, as a tool for information, revitalization and business projection of our city. We have also started to sign collaboration agreements with our 5 business areas, anticipating in a certain way one of the novelties established in the Preliminary Draft of the future Generalitat Law, on Management, Modernization and Promotion of the Industrial Areas of the Valencian Community, which implies the obligation to sign an agreement. But now we demand to go one step further: the Generalitat Valenciana must assign economic resources to those cities committed to their industrial areas, because we are a creator of wealth and employment.