The plenary session of the Provincial Council of Lleida approved this Thursday a sum of 1,950,000 euros in extraordinary credits for municipalities, county seats, and county councils to hire personnel for sanitary inspections in retail businesses.
The decision comes at a time when many municipalities must assume tasks of health prevention, promotion, and protection, but do not always have sufficient technical personnel to review commercial activity. The aid seeks to cover this lack of structure in local administration, especially in town councils that need to reinforce basic controls.
The Provincial Council reserved 1.95 million to reinforce inspections in businesses
Municipalities with more than 4,500 inhabitants and county councils may apply for this line of funding. The financing also extends to county seats, within a call aimed at supporting municipal competencies in health matters.
Marc Baró, Deputy of Finance, framed the measure within the need for municipalities to have qualified technical personnel to carry out inspections in retail businesses and ensure that the activity complies with established requirements.
The allocation was approved in the same plenary session in which the provincial corporation addressed other tools to support local management. Among these is the hiring of personnel for sanitary inspections in retail trade, a function linked to municipal public health control.
The plenary session authorized Local.iA to extend artificial intelligence to municipalities
In addition to the financial allocation, the plenary session authorized the implementation of the digital tool Local.iA to incorporate public artificial intelligence into municipal management. The agreement will be structured through a protocol between the Provincial Councils of Barcelona and Lleida so that the town councils in the demarcation can use the platform.
Agustí Jiménez, Vice President of the Provincial Council and head of the New Technologies area, explained that the platform establishes the applicable regulations, the governance model, and ethical considerations regarding the use of artificial intelligence applications, along with other services designed for the daily work of municipalities.
In parallel, the provincial corporation proposes that this implementation serve to standardize procedures among municipalities of different sizes. The tool incorporates a framework of use aimed at making technological adoption efficient, transparent, ethical, and sustainable.
Jiménez added that the agreement with the Diputación de Barcelona allows for reducing the digital and technological gap, especially in small municipalities, and facilitating the use of artificial intelligence by city councils that is, in his words, safe, reliable, and with guarantees.
Aid for sanitary inspections may be requested by city councils with more than 4,500 inhabitants and by comarcal councils, within a budget approved by the plenary of 1,950,000 euros.