DIA Distribuidora Internacional de Alimentacion : For an intelligent regulation to benefit everyone

We often wonder ask ourselves about the relationship between companies and public powers. It tends to be a complex relationship, given that decisions made in the political sphere can influence the economic activity of the private sector through the drafting of laws.

At the DIA Group, we have always considered that the relationship between Government and companies can only be understood as one of collaboration. Regulating without having knowledge of a market is a risk that no legislator should be allowed to take.

On their part, companies, especially those working in sensitive sectors, have an obligation to the public sector: to make ourselves known and offer our experience to the decision-makers, in order that they have access to full information when it comes to legislating.

If our sector is properly understood, better laws will be made for all. But this relationship must be reciprocal, and companies also need to know and enter into dialogue with legislators in order to be aware of the large number of factors that come in to play when regulating.

An exhaustive knowledge of these processes translates into good practices for a proper and legitimate representation of the interests of the private sector. For this reason, more than ever, it is necessary to professionalise the management of public affairs in order to avoid it being mired in obscurantism.

On the other hand, we are currently immersed in a climate of over-regulation, both nationally and at European-level. It is evident that legislators must also serve the common interest, and regulate those aspects that they consider most important to safeguard the citizens' mandate. But an excess of regulations can be damaging.

Thus, faced with over-regulation, we defend intelligent regulations that are governed by clear principles, have the public interest at its heart, are standardised to guarantee market unity, and do not create more problems than those they seek to solve, ensuring the protection of consumers, and not hindering social and economic progress. For all of the above reasons, the main beneficiaries of this clear, transparent and fluid dialogue between companies and legislators will be none other than citizens.