Bieguny metropolitalne we Francji : w poszukiwaniu narzędzi wzmacniania współpracy i rozwijania powiązań funkcjonalnych między francuskimi obszarami metropolitalnymi

Abstract

The aim of the French territorial reform from December 2010 was to change the structure of the French local political and administrative system thanks to institutional solutions that would strengthen the biggest agglomerations and lead to their progressive metropolization. The announced changes were meant to adjust the model of territorial organization to the require-ments of contemporary economy and to enhance national economic growth of the country in stag-nation. The introduction in the law of metropolises as new local-government territorial units that took over the most important competences of municipalities and departments was meant as a “ter-ritorial revolution”. Unfortunately, it failed. Meanwhile, the regulations that would make it possible to create a rather loose form of inter-territorial cooperation, a so-called Metropolitan Pole, that were inserted into the project at the last moment, gave results unexpected by the legislator. This situation shows the growing importance of flexible solutions regarding competences and territory, solutions that use multilevel governance as an effective tool for inter-territorial management in the situation of inertia of the classical territorial structure and obstacles to its reform.