On 29 September 2026, Valeria Ronzitti, General Secretary of SGI Europe, participated in the Implementation Dialogue convened by Executive Vice-President Raffaele Fitto on the forthcoming Right to Stay Strategy.

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This was the occasion for the SGI Europe General Secretary to highlight that making the Freedom to Stay a genuine choice requires affordable, accessible and high-quality Services of General Interest. Energy, water, transport, housing, healthcare and postal services are essential to ensuring that people can continue living and working in their territories.

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It was underlined that delivering this ambition requires an integrated approach involving service providers, employers, social partners, local and regional authorities, enterprises and civil society. Coherence across EU legislation and investment priorities, together with an adequately skilled workforce, must underpin this effort.

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To translate this ambition into practice, SGI Europe called for a systemic approach to Services of General Interest. A systematic assessment of EU initiatives should accompany this to determine whether they are financially viable, affordable across territories and supported by the workforce needed for their implementation.

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SGI Europe also advocated a dedicated Freedom to Stay indicator within the European Semester, alongside the Freedom to Stay integration into the next EU budget. These priorities would help connect the Strategy’s objectives with the policy coordination and investment needed to deliver them.

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Through the Coalition for the Freedom to Stay, stakeholders are brought together to help turn the Strategy into practical improvements for businesses, people, territories and service providers.