The European Parliament approved on January 17 the proposal presented by Barcelona Comerç and Vitrines d’Europe to create the European Capital for Local Commerce. The vote, which took place in Strasbourg, was attended by the Barcelona City Council Councilor for Commerce, Montserrat Ballarín, the president of Barcelona Comerç, Salva Vendrell, and several presidents of Barcelona’s local commercial hubs, as well as a delegation of Vitrines d’Europe.

During the presentation of the motion in Parliament, the president of the Petitions Committee of the European Parliament, Dolors Montserrat, and the MEPs Jordi Solé, Jordi Cañas and Ernest Urtasun publicly asked the European Commission for the first Local Capital of Commerce for Barcelona, which will initiate the procedures for being so.

Barcelona Comerç, with the support of Barcelona City Council, Barcelona Metropolitan Area, Diputació de Barcelona (Provincial Council), Generalitat de Catalunya and the Government of Spain, consolidated its intention to present Barcelona’s candidacy to assume the first European Capital of the Proximity trade.

The motion approved by the European Parliament contemplates incentives and European budgetary implications and the agreement to promote the annual reception by a European city of one year of informative and training activities aimed at citizens and merchants to value local commerce, promote their competitiveness and anchor a dynamic of urban life that is proper to the European identity of its cities and citizens.

The deputy mayor for Economy, Labor, Competitiveness and Finance of Barcelona City Council, Jaume Collboni, declared that “local businesses are in luck today. The approval of this capital will become a very important instrument to preserve and at the same time promote local commerce, the heritage of European cities that as institutions we must promote and protect against the threat of globalization and an accelerated digital transition”.