The First Tripartite Agreement in the EU: an Actor-centred Analysis of an Experimental Multi-level Interaction

Tripartite agreements and contracts have recently emerged as possible forms of a more direct, active and horizontal partnership between levels of government within the European Union. In 2004 an experimental agreement on sustainable mobility was signed by the Commission, the Italian government and the region of Lombardy. This article proposes an actor-centred analysis of the process which has led to the agreement. It is argued that multilevel governance is a reality that works, although only for some regions enjoying the necessary resources and political weight, and without entailing a distortion of authority structures and relations.