The vice president of Law and Justice, Mateusz Morawiecki, stated on Saturday that if voters choose to return to government, he would devote every effort to attracting large and very large companies from around the world to cities, municipalities, and voivodeships.
At a program conference in the Sejm organized by the OdNowa RP Association under the banner “Republic of Local Government,” PiS politicians presented local government policy concepts on Saturday.
As Morawiecki noted, Poland is a polycentric country with many cities and towns.
Morawiecki’s proposals
He argued that drawing global companies to Poland would be essential to addressing many challenges faced by smaller centers.
The demographic issue and the aging society would be alleviated because these entrepreneurs would help attract new workers, including Polish emigrants from London, France, and Germany, Morawiecki said.
This would increase the tax base and PIT revenues for municipal and voivodship budgets, while boosting CIT receipts for the voivodeships and management budgets. It would also drive investments in affordable energy, including nuclear and green energy, and in reliable transmission networks so that cheap, stable energy becomes a cornerstone of the country’s development.
Morawiecki added that many small towns could host and house the headquarters of large enterprises. This is his agenda for the next decade, aimed at easing demographic pressure and reducing outward migration from municipalities, provinces, and voivodeships.
Cooperation with local authorities
The OdNowa Association leader and deputy head of the PiS club, Marcin Ociepa, spoke about strengthening collaboration between the government and local administration.
Poland’s right will not succeed unless it becomes more open to self-government, he said.
Among the association’s demands is the establishment of a National School for Local Government. The bill is ready, and there is a possibility it will be introduced in this parliamentary term through a legislative initiative. The plan includes creating a sister university to the National School of Public Administration, focused on training local government staff to a high level rather than government personnel, presenting a significant challenge, according to Ociepa.
He also proposed a permanent seat in the Council of Ministers for the Minister of Local Government, not by creating new posts but by merging regional policy with the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy and coordinating with the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Affairs. Bringing these two sectors under one minister was his suggestion.
Additionally, Ociepa called for the establishment of a Council of Ministers and 16 Marshals, meeting twice a year. He proposed securing a place in the Senate for voivodeship marshals so they could represent their regions daily. Eighteen marshals out of a hundred senators would not disrupt party dynamics or elections and would give local governments a stronger voice in legislation, he asserted.
Morawiecki also commented on the local government program, asserting that the coalition could execute it. He criticized opponents who focus on scandals or political spats, arguing that municipalities, provinces, and cities will not see greater wealth through rhetoric alone.
He emphasized his belief in community and cooperation between the government and local authorities and highlighted three major national issues: depopulation, the need to build a strong tax base, and the urgent construction of a stable energy infrastructure. This, he said, should shape the program for the next decade.
The ongoing reform drive by the United Right should continue to prevent progress from stalling. The fundamental aim, as stated, is to build a state where homeland development starts with families, expands through local governments, and expands to the entire country.
The OdNowa Association, founded in 2021 by politicians involved in the Jarosław Gowin agreement, emerged after Gowin’s resignation and the departure of allies from the ruling coalition. Marcin Ociepa and MPs Anna Dąbrowska-Banaszek, Grzegorz Piechowiak, Wojciech Murdzek, and Andrzej Gut-Mostowy established OdNowa RP in September 2021, with PiS leadership later signaling cooperation within a united club.