The Ombudsman examined the filing of a complainant who referred to the inconsistent procedure of the District Labour Inspectorate which, on the basis of the complainant’s petition for the inspection of the employer, learned of the breach of the employer’s labour-law duties and ordered the employer to remedy the shortcomings ascertained during the inspection. However, the District Labour Inspectorate did not impose any fine on the employer for an administrative offence, not even after inspections carried out repeatedly in the past.

After inquiring into the matter, the Ombudsman concluded there was an error on the part of the District Labour Inspectorate consisting in the failure to initiate administrative proceedings on administrative offences of the employer. The Ombudsman believes that once the District Labour Inspectorate learns of the facts of the case to an extent that allows for a preliminary legal assessment indicating a violation of the law, the District Labour Inspectorate is obliged to initiate administrative proceedings on an administrative offence, regardless of the imposition and potential performance of measures for the remedy of shortcomings ascertained during the inspection. Initiation of administrative proceedings on an administrative offence is therefore not a matter of discretion of the District Labour Inspectorate, but is rather governed by the principle of court-directed (ex officio) proceedings. According to the principle of legality, the District Labour Inspectorate is obliged to investigate into all administrative offences ascertained.

It assesses the existence of the material criteria of an administrative offence only during the course of the initiated administrative proceedings. If the District Labour Inspectorate reaches the conclusion that the criteria were not met, there is no administrative offence and the administrative authority discontinues the proceedings. The District Labour Inspectorate takes into account any potential remedy of a shortcoming or repentance when determining the amount of the penalty only.

As the District Labour Inspectorate disagreed with the conclusions of her inquiry, the Ombudsman issued a final statement in this matter and proposed a remedial measure. Since the Inspectorate accepted the proposed measures subsequently, the Ombudsman concluded the inquiry.

The Public Defender of Rights (Ombudsman) was approached by a man who complained about the fact that the Capital City of Prague’s advertising regulations include exemptions that confer advantages to Prague in comparison with other natural and legal persons. The regulation in question prohibits advertising in a specific area (the Prague Heritage Reservation and the surrounding area) on the grounds of its general inappropriateness in a location of this type; therefore, the person of the advertiser should be of no consequence. The complainant contacted the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT), which did not find any problems in the aforementioned exemptions.

Deputy Ombudsman inquired into the matter and found errors in the procedure of the MIT and the Prague City Hall, whose original verdict was referenced by the MIT in its response to the complainant. The above authorities claim that Prague as the capital city is not and cannot be an entrepreneur in the area of advertising and that the events subject to the exemptions for the benefit of Prague stipulated by the regulation in question did not constitute a support for entrepreneurial activities, meaning no violation of the equality principle could possibly occur. However, the Deputy Ombudsman refuted their arguments and requested that the MIT initiate supervisory steps under Section 108 of the Capital City of Prague Act.    

Upon receiving the inquiry report, the MIT came up with a new and unsubstantiated claim that “the law itself is based on the fact that the position of entities in the respective area will not always be equal.” However, this argument was emphatically rejected by the Deputy Ombudsman, who provided reference to the Constitutional Court case law. The inquiry report as well as the final statement were also sent to Prague City Hall in order for the City Hall to consider a remedy by means of an amendment to the relevant regulation. 

Following the receipt of the final statement, the MIT requested that the Capital City of Prague, pursuant to Section 108 of the Capital City of Prague Act, ensure remedy of the cited regulation. The Chief Executive of the Prague City Hall subsequently informed the Deputy Ombudsman that the current exemptions will be left out from the prepared amendment of the relevant regulation and, consequently, the Deputy Ombudsman closed the inquiry into this matter.

Download the Ombudsman's overview (PDF, 171KB) or read it online (link is external).

La Institución del Justicia de Aragón está trabajando en un Informe sobre la despoblación en la Comunidad Autónoma con el fin de aportar ideas en el debate sobre esta realidad demográfica con importantes consecuencias en todos los ámbitos del desarrollo social y que en los últimos tiempos ha recobrado actualidad en la agenda política autonómica y estatal.

El informe impulsado por el Justicia supone una revisión del estudio que la Institución realizó en el año 2000 titulado “La despoblación en Aragón” en el que se realizaba un diagnóstico detallado del problema y se planteaban medidas para hacerle frente relacionadas con la natalidad, el envejecimiento, las migraciones, el desarrollo local como factor de equilibrio territorial y la localización empresarial, entre otras. Como la vez anterior, el Informe actual está coordinado por el Centro de Estudios sobre la Despoblación y Desarrollo de Áreas Rurales (CEDAR)

En opinión del Justicia de Aragón, Fernando García Vicente, el problema de la despoblación y el desequilibrio territorial es uno de los más graves a los que se enfrenta nuestra Comunidad Autónoma, que concentra la población en unos pocos puntos y deja despobladas amplias zonas del territorio.

Las consecuencias de esta realidad, agravadas por las bajas tasas de natalidad que apuntan hacia una sociedad envejecida en un espacio territorial en gran parte despoblado, inciden no sólo en aspectos estructurales, como el desequilibrio del sistema de pensiones por la disminución de la población activa, sino en el propio ámbito de los derechos de los ciudadanos.

En este sentido, desde la perspectiva de la despoblación territorial, la situación descrita puede poner en peligro la accesibilidad de los ciudadanos a las prestaciones básicas de un Estado de bienestar por lo que El Justicia se suma a las voces que reclaman cambios en el sistema de financiación autonómica que tengan en cuenta esta realidad así como gestiones activas del Gobierno central ante la Unión Europea para atraer fondos que permitan adoptar medidas contra la despoblación.

Fernando García Vicente, valora de forma positiva la designación de un Comisionado estatal encargado de ordenar la futura estrategia contra la despoblación, así como las actuaciones que hasta el momento ha realizado el Gobierno de Aragón en el marco de la Estrategia de Ordenación Territorial de Aragón (EOTA), documento de referencia del Gobierno de Aragón que contiene los objetivos generales, específicos, estrategias y normas para alcanzar un desarrollo territorial equilibrado y sostenible.


Enlaces:

• Informe del año 2000 titulado "La despoblación en Aragón"