"Start proceedings against Italy" UK MEP tells Thyssen

Jude Kirton-Darling with ALLSI President David Petrie
ROME -- British MEP Jude Kirton-Darling Monday demanded the EU Employment Commissioner Marianne Thyssen open infringement proceedings against Italy for denying foreign lecturers in Italian universities (lettori) their "fundamental rights," the Labour politician said. 
 Ms Kirton-Darling wrote to the Commissioner after the Brescia Court of Appeal callously extinguished the court cases of two Britons and an American - in breach of Articles 6 and 47 of the EU charter on fundamental rights - the right of a citizen to have his complaint adjudicated in a court of law
 "The decision by the Brescia Court of Appeal to extinguish the court cases of two Britons and an American is a clear breach of the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights," Kirton Darling said. "The right to an effective remedy and a fair trial is enshrined in EU law. We cannot let this decision pass unchallenged."
 "Member States are bound to uphold and guarantee the implementation of EU law and the judgments of the European Court of Justice (of which there have been 6 concerning lettori). Instead the Brescia Court of Appeal has applied an Italian law - known as Gelmini - which ends the cases of these 3 non-Italian workers, thereby denying them a judicial remedy. "
 "After (ALLSI lecturers' union chairman) David Petrie's last visit to the European Parliament Petitions Committee the European Commission clearly committed (September 29 2015) to assess opening infringement proceedings against the Italian authorities for its handling of the lettori cases."
 "Therefore, Today I have written to Marianne Thyssen the Commissioner Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion to act on its commitment to open infringement proceeding against the Italian authorities," the MEP added, "we cannot have a situation where a Member State chooses to reinterpret EU law to suit its own needs."
 The final say in laying down the principles of EU law rests with the European Court of Justice. The application of those decisions rests with the domestic jurisdiction.     
 In January 2011, the Berlusconi government introduced new measures, known as the Gelmini law – these measures provide for the “extinguishing”  of court cases pending and brought by lettori (non-Italian lecturers working) in Italian Universities. 
 The discriminatory nature of the Gelmini law and other Italian education laws already has  been condemned on several occasions by the European courts, yet there has been no change. 
    The first case concerns UK citizen, 53 year old Robert Coates. Under Italian law workers are paid one month’s salary at the end of contract (TFR – trattamento fino rapporto).They are entitled to an advance on this money either to purchase a house or for medical expenses. 
 Mr Coates wanted to purchase a house and applied for the advance to his employer, the University of Brescia. The University refused. Mr Coates sued and in a Brescia court, 12.11.11, awarded the payment of 39,620 euros, plus legal costs. 
The University of Brescia appealed this decision. Three Appeal Court judges, 11.7.13, rejected the University’s appeal grounds as “unfounded” but cited the Gelmini law and extinguished the lower court’s decision. Since, the University of Brescia has already clawed back €10,000 from Mr Coates, in July 2015, for legal expenses awarded to him by the lower Court.   
  The second case concerns Mr Coates (53), Dermot Costello, UK citizen (64) and US citizen Bettie Mims (72). A Brescia court awarded, in December 2011,  as much as 140.764 euros, 142,811 euros and 32,899 euros, respectively for arrears on unpaid wages, following the ECJ rulings. 
The University of Brescia appealed the decision of the lower court, citing Gelmini and the Brescia Court of appeal, 11.7.13, extinguished the judgment of the lower court.    
 The European Parliament’s committee for petitions received a reply from the European Commission on 29 September 2015 in which the Commission expresses “significant doubts” as to the legitimacy of the Gelmini law and has undertaken to “pursue the matter further with the Italian authorities”.      
 The lecturers’ lawyer, Professor Avvocato Lorenzo Picotti, who has successfully pled to lettori cases in the ECJ, said that the Brescia court of appeal’s decisions are now the leading cases in demonstrating that the Gelmini law is in stark contrast with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.     Mr Coates’ case was being monitored by his former UK constituency MP, ex- Prime Minister Gordon Brown. He has now taken the matter up with his current Scottish Nationalist, MP, Roger Mullin.   
 David Petrie, has written to the European Parliament's chair of the Petitions Committee, Swedish deputy Ms Cecilia Wikström, urging the Parliament, which has been supporting the lettori for over 25 years, to hold the Commission to account.