Networks, taxation, work, energy and more. Melons Pills Thought
What Giorgia Meloni said in her speech to the Chamber on energy (we must not "give in to Putin's blackmail"), work ("the door of dignity"), tax authorities (modification of the criteria of the Revenue Agency) and more. The point of the Agi
The ship Italy like the Vespucci. A jab with an ironic flavor like the one on the pineapple attacks' victim of food sovereignty. A very different tribute, in-depth, and above all bipartisan, to all women, in politics and not, current and in history, more or less recent, who with example and action have built the scale that has led to a another woman to break the infamous "glass roof", and to arrive at Palazzo Chigi. These are just some of the salient passages of Giorgia Meloni's speech for confidence in the Chamber held today, obviously full of passages of interest as such a text can and must be. We review them briefly, point by point. Perhaps even skipping the temporal succession, as the one on fascism and totalitarianism deserves, for example.
Fascism
“Freedom and democracy are the distinctive elements of contemporary European civilization, in which I have always recognized myself. And therefore, in spite of what has been argued instrumentally, I have never felt sympathy or closeness towards anti-democratic regimes. For no regime, including fascism ”. –
Racial Laws
“I have always considered the racial laws of 1938 the lowest point in Italian history, a shame that will mark our people forever. The totalitarianisms of the twentieth century tore apart the whole of Europe, not just Italy, for more than half a century, in a succession of horrors that swept over most of the European states. And the horror and the crimes, whoever they are committed by, do not deserve justifications whatsoever, and are not compensated for by other horrors and other crimes ”.
Confidence
“I have spoken many times in this room, as a deputy and as a minister”, with “a feeling of emotion and profound respect. It is all the more true today that I am addressing you as Prime Minister. it is a great responsibility for those who must deserve that trust and for those who must grant it. These are the fundamental moments of our democracy which we must never ever get used to ”.
Dragons
Meloni thanks him for his work "at national and international level" and because " he offered all his availability in the handover, fast and serene, even if ironically to a government led by the only opposition party to the one from he chaired. There is a lot of embroidered on this aspect but there is nothing strange about it. This is how it should always be, so it is in the great democracies ”.
Political government
“My thanks go to the Italian people, with regret for the many who have renounced the vote, citizens who consider their vote useless because so much is decided in the palaces or in the exclusive clubs. Today we are interrupting this great Italian anomaly, giving life to a political government that is fully representative of the popular will ”.
Supervision
“They can spend their time better. We will make our voices heard without I hope an external competition. Whoever speaks of 'vigilance is disrespectful not to me but to the Italian people who have no lesson to take ”.
Ukraine
"Freedom has a cost, Italy will continue to be a partner of the valiant Ukrainian people who oppose the aggression of Russia" not only "because we cannot accept war but also because it is the best way to do our national interest" .
Power
“The war has aggravated the already very difficult situation caused by the increases in the cost of energy and fuels. Unsustainable costs for many companies, which could be forced to close and lay off their workers, and for millions of families who are no longer able to cope with the rising bills. But those who believe it is possible to trade Ukraine's freedom for our peace of mind are wrong. Giving in to Putin's blackmail on energy would not solve the problem, it would aggravate it by opening the way to further demands and blackmail, with future increases in energy even greater than those we have known in recent months ”.
Mattarella
"A sincere thanks goes to the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella who, in following up on the indication clearly expressed by the Italians last September 25, did not want me to miss his precious advice ".
Italy-Vespucci
“We are in the midst of a storm, with a boat that has suffered several damages, and the Italians have entrusted us with the task of taking the ship to port in this very difficult crossing. We were aware of what awaited us, as are all the other political forces, even those that governing in the last ten years have led to a worsening of all the main macroeconomic fundamentals, and today they will say that they have the solutions and are ready to impute to the new government, perhaps with the support of media deployed, the difficulties that Italy faces ".
“We know that our boat, Italy, with all its dents, remains the most beautiful clean ship, to take up the famous expression used by the American aircraft carrier Independence when it crossed the Italian training ship Amerigo Vespucci. A solid boat, to which no destination is precluded, if only it decides to resume the journey. So we are here to mend the torn sails, fix the hull boards and overcome the waves crashing on us. With the compass of our convictions to show us the route to the chosen destination, and with a crew capable of performing their duties in the best possible way ".
Feminine Pantheon
“Among the many burdens that I feel weighing on my shoulders today, there can be no other than being the first woman to head the government in this nation . When I dwell on the extent of this fact, I inevitably find myself thinking of the responsibility I have towards all those women who at this moment face difficulties in asserting their talent or, more simply, the right to see their daily sacrifices appreciated. But I also think with reverence of those who built with the boards of their example the ladder that today allows me to climb and break the heavy glass roof that is over our heads ”.
Giorgia Meloni dedicates this passage to her experience as the first woman Prime Minister. And then, Meloni enunciates a bipartisan pantheon, in the feminine, that of "women who dared, by impetus, for reason, or for love", declined in the Chamber with only first names but here accompanied by surnames, although some are easily understood: “Like Cristina Trivulzio of Belgioioso, elegant organizer of lounges and barricades. Or like Rosalie Montmasson, stubborn to the point of starting with the Thousand who made Italy. Like Alfonsina Strada, who pedaled hard against the wind of prejudice. Like Maria Montessori or Grazia Deledda who with their example threw open the gates of education for girls across the country. And then Tina Anselmi, Nilde Jotti, Rita Levi Montalcini, Oriana Fallaci, Ilaria Alpi, Mariagrazia Cutuli, Fabiola Giannotti, Marta Cartabia, Elisabetta Casellati, Samantha Cristoforetti, Chiara Corbella Petrillo ”. To them Meloni says “thank you for having demonstrated the value of Italian women, as I hope to be able to do too”.
Semi-presidentialism
“We are firmly convinced that Italy needs a constitutional reform in the presidential sense, which guarantees stability and restores centrality to popular sovereignty. A reform that allows Italy to pass from an 'interloquent democracy to a' decident democracy '. "We want to start from the hypothesis of semi-presidentialism on the French model, which in the past had also obtained a wide approval from the center-left, but we remain open to other solutions as well".
St. Benedict
“We are the heirs of St. Benedict, an Italian, the main patron of the whole of Europe”.
Pineapple
"Full food sovereignty can no longer be postponed and does not mean putting pineapple out of business, as some have said, but ensuring that we will not depend on nations distant from us to be able to feed our children".
National Networks
“We intend to protect national strategic infrastructures by ensuring public ownership of the networks on which companies will be able to offer services under free competition, starting with communications. The digital transition, strongly supported by the NRP, must be accompanied by technological sovereignty, the national cloud and cyber-security ". “We finally want to introduce a clause to safeguard the national interest, also from an economic point of view, for concessions of public infrastructures, such as motorways and airports”.
Internal Revenue Service
In the context of "a tight fight against tax evasion, starting with total tax evaders, large companies and large VAT fraud", he speaks of "a change in the criteria for evaluating the results of the Revenue Agency, which we want to anchor to the amounts actually collected and not to simple disputes, as incredibly happened so far ".
Dad
“There is a theme of rampant poverty that we cannot ignore. His Holiness Pope Francis, to whom I address an affectionate greeting, recently reiterated an important concept: 'Poverty cannot be fought with welfare, the door to a man's dignity is work. it is a profound truth, which only those who have known poverty closely can fully appreciate ”.
Students and Squares
“I think I know more than others the universe of youth commitment, a wonderful gym of life for boys and girls, regardless of the political ideas they choose to defend and promote. I confess that it will be difficult for me not to feel sympathy even for those who take to the streets against the policies of our government. The thousand events in which I participated with so much passion will inevitably come back to my memory. Without ever taking orders from anyone. To the famous "Be crazy, be hungry", by Steve Jobs, I would like to add "be free". because the greatness of the human being is in free will ”.
Covid
Unfortunately, we cannot rule out a new wave of covids or the emergence of a new pandemic in the future. But we can learn from the past to be ready. Italy has adopted the most restrictive measures in the entire West, severely limiting the fundamental freedoms of people and economic activities, but despite this it is among the states that have recorded the worst data in terms of mortality and infections. Something definitely did not work and so I want to say right now that we will not replicate that model in any case ”.
“If you ask citizens for responsibility, the first to demonstrate it must be those who ask for it. It will be necessary to clarify what happened during the management of the pandemic crisis. It is due to those who lost their lives and those who did not spare themselves in the hospital wards, while others were doing millionaire deals with the purchase and sale of masks and respirators ”.
Falcone and Borsellino
"We will face mafia cancer with our heads held high, as the many heroes have taught us who with their courage have set an example to all Italians, refusing to look away or run away, even when they knew that tenacity would probably lead them to death. Magistrates, politicians, escort agents, soldiers, ordinary citizens, priests. Giants like Giovanni Falcone, Francesca Morvillo, Rosario Livatino, Rocco Chinnici, Pio La Torre, Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, Piersanti Mattarella, Emanuela Loi, Libero Grassi, Don Pino Puglisi, and with them a very long list of men and women that we will not forget " .
Bibbiano
"We have undertaken the commitment to limit the excess of discretion in juvenile justice, with guaranteed and objective custody and adoption procedures, so that there are never more Bibbiano cases , and we intend to bring it to an end".
'Mattei Plan' for Africa "
“Next 27 October will be the sixtieth anniversary of the death of Enrico Mattei, a great Italian who was one of the architects of post-war reconstruction, capable of entering into agreements of mutual convenience with nations all over the world. Italy must promote a 'Mattei plan' for Africa, a virtuous model of collaboration and growth between the European Union and African nations, also to counter the worrying spread of Islamist radicalism, especially in the sub-Saharan area. We would like to recover our strategic role in the Mediterranean after years of retreating ”.
Underdog (one of the very few words in English)
"I am the first woman appointed as President of the Council of Ministers in the history of Italy, I come from a cultural area that has often been confined to the margins of the Republic, and I certainly have not arrived here in the arms of a family and influential friendships.
I represent what the British would call the underdog, the underdog, to simplify, who must overturn all predictions to establish himself. I intend to do it again, overturn the forecasts, with the help of a valid team of ministers and undersecretaries, with the trust and work of the parliamentarians who will vote in favor, and with the insights that will come from the criticisms of those who will vote against ”.
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HERE IS THE FULL SPEECH BY GIORGIA MELONI WITH THE PROGRAMMATIC STATEMENTS:
Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen,
I have spoken many times in this Chamber, as a deputy, as a Vice-President of the Chamber, as a Minister of Youth; yet, the solemnity is such that I believe I have never been able to intervene without a feeling of emotion and profound respect in me. It is obviously all the more true today that I turn to you as President of the Council of Ministers to ask you to express your confidence in a government led by me. A great responsibility for those who must obtain and deserve that trust and a great responsibility for those who must grant or deny that trust. These are the fundamental moments of our democracy, which we must never get used to. For this I want to thank, from the outset, those who will express themselves in this House according to their convictions, whatever the choice they make.
A sincere thanks goes to the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella who, in following up on the indication clearly expressed by the Italians last September 25, did not want to miss his precious advice. Thanks, of course, to the parties of the government coalition, to my Brothers of Italy, to the Lega, Forza Italia, Noi Moderati and their leaders, to that center-right that, after having established itself in the polls, gave birth to this government in one of the shortest periods of time in republican history and I believe that this is the most tangible sign of a cohesion that, in the test of facts, always manages to overcome the different sensitivities, in the name of a higher interest. The speed of these days was a natural fact for us, but it was also a duty, because the extremely difficult condition in which Italy finds itself does not allow us to hesitate or waste time, and we do not intend to do so. And for this I also want to thank my predecessor, President Mario Draghi, who, both nationally and internationally, has, in recent weeks, offered all his availability so that there was a fast and peaceful handover with the new Government, of course, even if, ironically, that government was led by the president of the only party in opposition to the Executive that he chaired. There is a lot of embroidered on this aspect, but I want to tell you that I think there is nothing strange about it. This is how it should always be, so it is in the great democracies.
And, among the many burdens that I feel weighing on my shoulders today, there can also be that of being the first woman to head the government in this nation. When I dwell on the extent of this fact, I inevitably find myself thinking about the responsibility I have towards all those women who at this moment face great and unjust difficulties in order to assert their talent or, more simply, the right to have theirs appreciated. daily sacrifices. But I also think, with reverence, of those who built, with the boards of their example, the ladder that today allows me to climb and break the heavy glass roof that is over our heads. Women who dared, out of impetus, out of reason, or out of love. Like Cristina (Trivulzio di Belgioioso), elegant organizer of lounges and barricades. Or like Rosalie (Montmasson), stubborn to the point of starting with the Thousand who made Italy. Like Alfonsina (Strada) who pedaled hard against the wind of prejudice. Like Maria (Montessori) or Grazia (Deledda) who with their example threw open the gates of education for girls across the country. And then Tina (Anselmi), Nilde (Jotti), Rita (Levi Montalcini), Oriana (Fallaci), Ilaria (Alpi), Mariagrazia (Cutuli), Fabiola (Giannotti), Marta (Cartabia), Elisabetta (Casellati), Samantha ( Cristoforetti), Chiara (Corbella Petrillo). Thank you! Thank you for showing the value of Italian women, as I hope to be able to do now too.
But my thanks, the most heartfelt, obviously goes to the Italian people, to those who decided not to miss the electoral appointment and expressed their vote, allowing the full realization of the democratic path, which they want in the people, and only in the people. , the holder of sovereignty, with regret, however, for the many who have renounced the exercise of this civic duty, enshrined in the Constitution, citizens who increasingly consider their vote useless, because they say: "So then someone else decides , so much is decided in the palaces or in the exclusive clubs ". Unfortunately, this has often been the case in the last 11 years, with a succession of government majorities that are fully legitimate on a constitutional level, but dramatically distant from the indications of the voters.
We, today, interrupt this great Italian anomaly, giving life to a political government, fully representative of the popular will. And we intend to do so by fully assuming the rights and duties that belong to those who win the elections: to be a parliamentary majority and a government structure for 5 years, doing it to the best of our ability, always putting the interest of the Nation before that of part and party. We will not use the vote of millions of Italians to replace one system of power with another distinct and opposing one.
What we want to do is release the best energies of this nation and guarantee Italians, all Italians, a future of greater freedom, justice, well-being and security. And if in order to do so we will have to displease some potentates or make choices that may not be immediately understood by some citizens, we will not back down, because we certainly do not lack courage.
We presented ourselves in the electoral campaign with a coalition government framework program and with more articulated programs of the individual parties. The voters have chosen the center-right and, within the coalition, have rewarded certain proposals more than others. We will keep those commitments, because the link between representative and represented is the very essence of democracy. I know well that some observers and opposition political forces will not like many of our proposals, but I do not intend to indulge the drift according to which democracy belongs to some more than others and that an unwelcome electoral outcome should not be accepted and left. indeed, prevented the realization, by any means. In recent days there have been many, even outside our national borders, who have said that they want to supervise the new government. I would say they can spend their time better. In this House and in our Parliament there are valid and combative opposition forces, more than capable of making their voices heard, without – I hope – any outside help.
I want to hope that those forces agree with me that those from abroad who say they want to watch over Italy do not disrespect me or this government: they disrespect the Italian people, who have no lessons to take.
Italy is fully part of the West and its system of alliances, founding state of the European Union, the Eurozone and the Atlantic Alliance, member of the G7 and, above all, the cradle, together with Greece , of Western civilization and its system of values, based on freedom, equality and democracy, precious fruits that spring from the classical and Judeo-Christian roots of Europe. We are the heirs of St. Benedict, an Italian, the main patron of the whole of Europe.
Europe. Allow me, speaking of Europe, first of all to thank the leaders of the EU institutions, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, the rotating President of the Council, my friend Petr Fiala and, with them, the many Heads of State and Government who, in these hours, have wished me good work. Obviously, the curiosity and interest in the posture that the Government will hold towards the European institutions or, even better, I would like to say within the European institutions, do not escape me, because that is the place where Italy will make its voice heard loudly. , as befits a great founding nation. Not to curb or sabotage European integration, as I have sometimes heard, even in recent weeks, but to help direct it towards greater effectiveness in responding to crises and external threats and towards an approach closer to citizens and businesses. .
We, to be clear, do not conceive the European Union as an elite circle, with Serie A shareholders and Serie B shareholders or, worse, as a joint stock company and managed by a board of directors, with the sole task of holding the accounts in order. For us, the European Union is the common home of the peoples of Europe and, as such, it must be able to face the great challenges of our time, starting with those that the Member States can hardly face alone. I am thinking of trade agreements, of course, but also of the supply of raw materials and energy, of migration policies, of geopolitical choices, of the fight against terrorism, great challenges for which the European Union has not always been ready.
Because, colleagues, how was it possible that an integration that was born in 1950, 70 years ago, as an Economic Community of Coal and Steel, 70 years later finds itself, after having dramatically expanded its spheres of competence, to be more exposed precisely in terms of energy supply and raw materials?
Who asks himself these questions is not an enemy or a heretic, but a pragmatist, who is not afraid to say when something does not work as it could. We need a more effective integration in facing the great challenges, in compliance with that founding motto that reads: "United in diversity", because this is the great European peculiarity, Nations with millenary histories, capable of uniting each one bringing their own identity as value added. A common European home certainly means shared rules also in the economic-financial sphere. This government will respect the rules currently in force and, at the same time, will offer its contribution to change those that have not worked, starting with the ongoing debate on the reform of the Stability and Growth Pact.
Due to its strength and its history, Italy has the duty, even before the right, to stand tall in these international fora, with a constructive spirit, but without subordination or inferiority complexes, as it has too often seemed to us. that happened in the past, combining the affirmation of one's national interest with the awareness of a common European and Western destiny.
The Atlantic Alliance guarantees our democracies a framework of peace and security that we too often take for granted; it is Italy's duty to contribute fully to it, because, whether we like it or not, freedom has a cost and that cost, for a State, is the ability it has to defend itself and the reliability it demonstrates within the framework of the alliances to which it belongs. Italy, over the years, has been able to demonstrate it, starting from the many international missions of which we have been protagonists, and for this I want to thank the women and men of our Armed Forces for having kept Italy's prestige high in the most difficult contexts. , even at the cost of your own life: your country will always be grateful to you!
Italy will continue to be a reliable partner in the Atlantic Alliance, starting with support for the valiant Ukrainian people who oppose the invasion of the Russian Federation, not only because we cannot accept the war of aggression and the violation of territorial integrity. of a sovereign nation, but also because it is the best way to defend our national interest. Only an Italy that respects its commitments can have the authority to ask, at European and Western level, for example, that the burdens of the international crisis be shared in a more balanced way and this is what we intend to do, starting with the energy issue.
The war has aggravated the already very difficult situation caused by the increases in the cost of energy and fuels, unsustainable costs for many companies that could be forced to close and lay off their workers and for millions of families who are no longer able today. to cope with the rise in bills. But those who believe that it is possible to trade Ukraine's freedom for our peace of mind are wrong. Giving in to Putin's blackmail on energy would not solve the problem, it would aggravate it, opening the way to further demands and blackmail, with future increases in energy even greater than those we have known in recent months. The signals received from the last European Council represent a step forward achieved also thanks to the commitment of my predecessor and Minister Cingolani, but they are still insufficient. The absence even today of a common response leaves, as the only space, that of the measures of individual national governments that risk undermining the internal market and the competitiveness of our companies.
On the price front, if, on the one hand, it is true that the mere discussion of containment measures has temporarily slowed speculation, on the other, it is evident that, if the announcements are not followed up quickly with concrete mechanisms, speculation will start again. Also for this reason it will be necessary to maintain and strengthen the national measures to support families and businesses, both on the bills and on the fuel side, a massive financial commitment that will drain most of the available resources and force us to postpone other measures that we would have. wanted to start already in the next budget law. But our priority today must be to put a stop to expensive energy and accelerate, in any case, the diversification of sources of supply and national production, because I want to believe that paradoxically, an opportunity can also emerge from the drama of the energy crisis. for Italy. Our seas have gas fields that we have a duty to fully exploit and our nation, in particular the South, is the paradise of renewables, with its sun, wind, earth heat, tides, rivers, a green energy heritage too often blocked by bureaucracy and incomprehensible vetoes. In short, I am convinced that Italy, with a little courage and a practical spirit, could emerge from this crisis stronger and more autonomous than before.
In addition to expensive energy, Italian families find themselves having to face a level of inflation that has reached 11.1 per cent on an annual basis and is inexorably eroding their purchasing power, despite some of these increases having been absorbed. by companies. It is essential to intervene with measures aimed at increasing the disposable income of families, starting from the reduction of taxes on productivity bonuses, from the further raising of the exemption threshold of the so-called fringe benefits, from the strengthening of corporate welfare, to be able to enlarge the range of assets primary employees who benefit from VAT reduced to 5 percent. Concrete measures that we will also address with the next budget law, on which we are already working.
The context in which the Government will find itself to act is a very complicated one, perhaps the most difficult since the Second World War to today. Geopolitical tensions and the energy crisis curb the hope of a post-pandemic economic recovery. The macroeconomic forecasts for 2023 indicate a marked slowdown in the Italian, European and world economy, in a climate of absolute uncertainty. The European Central Bank, in September, revised its 2023 growth forecast for the euro area, with a cut of 1.2 percentage points compared to the forecasts for the month of June, forecasting growth of just 0.9 percent. Slowdown and downward revisions that obviously also affect the trend of the Italian economy for the next year. In the latest update to the DEF, the GDP growth forecast for 2023 stops at 0.6 percent, exactly a quarter of the 2.4 percent forecast in the April Economic and Financial Document and the MEF forecasts. they are even optimistic compared to the most recent ones of the International Monetary Fund, according to which 2023 will be a year of recession for the Italian economy: minus 0.2 per cent, the worst result among the main world economies after that of Germany. And, unfortunately, it is not an isolated situation, the data are clear. In the last twenty years, Italy has grown by 4 per cent overall, while France and Germany by more than 20 per cent; in the last ten years our nation has placed itself in the last places in Europe for economic and employment growth, with the sole exception of the rebound recorded after the collapse of GDP in 2020. It is no coincidence that ten years during which weak governments have succeeded one another, heterogeneous, without a clear popular mandate, unable to resolve the structural deficiencies suffered by Italy and its economy and to lay the foundations for sustained and lasting growth.
Low or zero growth, therefore, accompanied by the surge in inflation which exceeded 9 per cent in the euro area and led the European Central Bank, like other central banks, for the first time in eleven years, to raise interest rates. A decision considered by many to be risky and which risks having repercussions on bank lending to households and businesses and which is added to that already taken by the Central Bank itself to put an end, starting from 1 July 2022, to the program for the purchase of fixed-income securities on open market, creating an additional difficulty for those Member States which, like ours, have a high public debt. We are therefore in the midst of a storm. Our boat has suffered several damages and the Italians have entrusted us with the task of taking the ship to port in this very difficult crossing. We were aware of what awaited us, as are all the other political forces, even those that, by governing in the last ten years, have led – because this is what the numbers say – a worsening of the main macroeconomic fundamentals, and today they will obviously say that they have the solutions and are ready to blame the new government for the difficulties that Italy faces. We were aware of the boulder we were carrying on our shoulders. We fought all the same to take on this responsibility because, firstly, we are not people used to running away and, secondly, because our boat, Italy, with all its dents, remains "the most beautiful ship in the world. ”, To quote the famous expression used by the American aircraft carrier Independence when it encountered the training ship Amerigo Vespucci. A solid boat to which no destination is precluded if it decides to resume the journey. So we are here to try to mend the torn sails, fix the boards of the hull, overcome the waves that crash on us, with the compass of our convictions to show us the course to the chosen destination and with a crew that is capable of perform their duties in the best possible way.
We were asked how we intend to reassure investors in the face of a debt of 145 per cent of GDP, second in Europe only to that of Greece. We could answer by citing some fundamentals of our economy that remain solid despite everything: we are among the few European nations in constant primary surplus, that is to say the state spends less than it collects, net of interest on debt; the private savings of Italian families have exceeded the threshold of 5 trillion euros and in a climate of confidence could support investments in the real economy. But, even more than these already significant data, the still unexpressed potential that Italy has are important. I feel I can say that, if this government were able to do what it has in mind, betting on Italy could be not only a safe investment, but perhaps even a good deal, because the horizon we want to look at is not next year. or the next election deadline. What interests us is what Italy will be like in ten years, and I am ready to do what needs to be done, at the cost of not being understood, even at the cost of not being re-elected, to be sure that I have made it, with my and our work, the future of this easier nation.
The way to reduce the debt is not the blind austerity imposed in the past years and neither are the more or less creative financial adventurisms. The main road, the only one possible, is economic, lasting and structural growth.
And to achieve it we are naturally open to favoring foreign investments: if, on the one hand, we will counter predatory logic that jeopardizes strategic national production, on the other, we will be open to welcoming and stimulating those foreign companies that choose to invest in Italy, bringing development, employment and know-how, in a logic of mutual benefits.
The National Recovery and Resilience Plan fits into this context. Funds raised with the common European debt issue to face global crises. A proposal made at the time by the center-right government, with the then Minister Giulio Tremonti, for years opposed, sometimes derided, then implemented. The PNRR is an extraordinary opportunity to modernize Italy: we all have a duty to make the most of it. The challenge is complex due to the structural and bureaucratic limits that have always made it difficult for Italy to be able to fully use even the European funds of ordinary programming. Suffice it to say that the Update to the 2022 DEF has reduced the public expenditure activated by the PNRR to 15 billion compared to the 29.4 envisaged in the DEF last April. Compliance with future deadlines will require even more attention, considering that up to now, for the most part, works already started in the past have been accounted for, something that cannot continue to be done in the coming years. We will best spend the 68.9 billion non-repayable and 122.6 billion lent to Italy by the Next Generation EU, without delay and without waste, agreeing with the European Commission the necessary adjustments to optimize spending, especially in light of the increase in the prices of raw materials and the energy crisis, because these materials are faced with a pragmatic approach and not with an ideological approach.
The PNRR must not be understood only as a large public spending plan, but as an opportunity to make a real cultural change. Finally, to file the logic of bonuses, for some, often useful above all for electoral campaigns, in favor of medium-term investments destined for the well-being of the entire national community. Remove all the obstacles that hinder economic growth and that for too long we have resigned ourselves to considering Italy's endemic evils, but they are not.
One of these is certainly political instability. In the last twenty years, Italy has had, on average, a government every two years, often changing the reference majority as well. This is the reason why the measures that guaranteed safe and immediate consensus have always prevailed over strategic choices. It is the reason why bureaucracies have often become untouchable and impervious to merit. This is the reason why Italy's negotiating capacity in international fora has been weak. And it is the reason why foreign investments, which can hardly bear the changeability of governments, have been discouraged. This is the reason why we are firmly convinced that Italy needs a constitutional reform in the presidential sense, which guarantees stability and restores centrality to popular sovereignty. A reform that allows Italy to pass from an "interloquent democracy" to a "deciding democracy".
We want to start from the hypothesis of a semi-presidentialism on the French model, which in the past had also obtained a wide approval from the center-left, but we remain open to other solutions as well.
We want to discuss this with all the political forces present in Parliament, to arrive at the best and most shared reform possible. But let it be clear that we will not give up reforming Italy if we are faced with prejudicial oppositions. In this case, we will move according to the mandate that has been given to us on this issue by the Italians: to give Italy an institutional system in which whoever wins governs for five years and in the end is judged by the voters for what they have managed to do. .
In parallel with the presidential reform, we intend to follow up on the virtuous process of differentiated autonomy already started by various Italian regions according to the constitutional dictates and in implementation of the principles of subsidiarity and solidarity, within a framework of national cohesion. For the province of Bolzano we will discuss the restoration of the standards of autonomy which in 1992 led to the issue of the UN release receipt. It is our intention to complete the process to give Roma Capitale the powers and resources that belong to a great European capital and to give new centrality to our municipalities. Because each bell tower, each village is a piece of our identity to be defended. I am thinking in particular of those who are located in inland areas, in mountainous areas and in the high lands, who need an allied state to promote housing and combat depopulation.
I am convinced that this turning point we have in mind is also the best opportunity to return to putting the southern question at the center of the Italian agenda. The South is no longer seen as a problem, but as an opportunity for development for the whole nation.
We will work hard to bridge an unacceptable infrastructure gap, eliminate inequalities, create jobs, ensure social security and improve the quality of life. We must be able to put an end to that mockery whereby the South exports manpower, intelligence and capital that are fundamental in those regions from which they leave. It is not an easy goal, of course, but our commitment to this will be total.
And if the infrastructures in the South can no longer be postponed, also in the rest of Italy it is necessary to build new ones, to enhance the connections of people and goods, but also of data and communications. With the aim of reconnecting not only the North to the South, but also the Tyrrhenian coast to the Adriatic coast and the islands to the rest of the Peninsula.
Structural investments are needed to address the climate emergency, environmental challenges, hydrogeological risk and coastal erosion, and to accelerate the reconstruction processes of the territories affected in recent years by earthquakes and natural disasters, such as the dramatic flood that in the night between on 15 and 16 September it shocked the Marche region. Allow me, together with all of you, to renew here my condolences for the victims and closeness to the whole community: we are at your side, we will not abandon you, count on us.
We intend to protect national strategic infrastructures by ensuring public ownership of the networks, on which companies will be able to offer services under free competition, starting with that of communications. The digital transition, strongly supported by PNRR, must go hand in hand with technological sovereignty, the national cloud and cyber-security.
And we want to finally introduce a clause to safeguard the national interest, also from an economic point of view, for the concessions of public infrastructures, such as motorways and airports. Because the model of oligarchs sitting on oil wells accumulating billions without even ensuring investment is not a free market model worthy of a Western democracy.
Italy must return to having an industrial policy, focusing on those sectors in which it can count on a competitive advantage. I think of the brand, made up of fashion, luxury, design, up to high technology. Made of products of absolute excellence in the agri-food sector, which must be defended at European level and with greater integration of the supply chain at national level, also to aim for full food sovereignty that can no longer be postponed. This does not mean, of course, putting pineapple out of business, as some have said, but more simply ensuring that we will not depend on nations distant from us to feed our children. I am thinking of Italy's favorable position in the Mediterranean and the opportunities linked to the economy of the sea, which can and must become a strategic asset for the whole of Italy and in particular for the development of the South. And I think about beauty.
Yes, because Italy is the nation that more than any other in the world embodies the idea of scenic, artistic, narrative and expressive beauty. The whole world knows it, loves us for this and wants to buy Italian, learn about our history and come on vacation to us. It is a certain pride, but above all it is an economic resource of inestimable value, which feeds our tourism and cultural industry. And I would add that returning to focus on the strategic value of Italianness also means promoting the Italian language abroad and enhancing the link with the Italian communities present in every part of the world that are an integral part of ours.
In order for all the growth objectives to be achieved, a cultural revolution is needed in the relationship between the State and the production system, which must be equal and one of mutual trust. Those who today have the strength and the will to do business in Italy must be supported and facilitated, not harassed and viewed with suspicion, because wealth is created by companies with their workers, not by the state with decrees or edicts. The motto of this government will be: "do not disturb those who want to do".
Above all, companies are asking for less bureaucracy, clear and certain rules, quick and transparent answers. We will tackle the problem starting from a structural simplification and deregulation of administrative procedures to stimulate the economy, growth and investments, also because we all know how much the excess of legislation, bureaucracy and regulation exponentially increases the risk of irregularities, disputes and corruption. An evil that we have a duty to eradicate.
We need fewer rules, clearer for everyone and a new relationship between citizen and public administration, so that the citizen does not feel a weak part in the face of a tyrant state that does not listen to its needs and frustrates its expectations.
From this Copernican revolution a new fiscal pact will have to be born which will rest on three pillars. The first: to reduce the tax burden on businesses and households through a reform based on equity; I am thinking, for example, of the progressive introduction of the family quotient, but I am thinking of the extension of the flat tax for VAT numbers from the current 65 thousand euros to 100 thousand euros of turnover. And, alongside this, starting for a flat tax, from the introduction of the flat tax on the increase in income compared to the maximum reached in the previous three years: a virtuous measure, with limited impact for the state coffers, which can be a strong incentive to growth.
The second pillar: a fiscal respite to allow citizens and businesses, especially SMEs, in difficulty, to regularize their position with the tax authorities.
And finally, a close fight against tax evasion that must start with total tax evaders, large companies and large VAT fraud, and above all must be a real fight against tax evasion, not a hunt for revenue. This is the reason why we intend to start from a modification of the criteria for evaluating the results of the Revenue Agency, which we want to anchor to the amounts actually collected and not to simple disputes, as incredibly has happened so far.
For some time now, companies and workers have been asking for a reduction in the tax and contribution wedge as a non-postponable priority. The excessive tax burden on labor is one of the main obstacles to the creation of new jobs and the competitiveness of our companies on international markets. The goal we set ourselves is to intervene gradually to reach a cut of at least five points in the wedge in favor of companies and workers to lighten the tax burden of the former and increase the payroll of the latter. To incentivize companies to hire, we have in mind a tax mechanism that rewards activities with a high density of work – “the more you hire, the less you pay”, we had summarized it – but obviously this must not negate the necessary support for technological innovation.
Speaking of business and work, our thoughts turn to the dozens of crisis tables that are still open, to which we will devote our utmost commitment, and to those thousands of self-employed workers who never got up after the pandemic. To them, who have often been unjustly treated as children of a lesser God, we want to recognize adequate protections, in line with those rightly guaranteed to employees, because we have always been alongside those almost 5 million self-employed workers, including artisans, traders. and freelancers, who constitute a backbone of the Italian economy and we will not stop now. For us, a worker is a worker.
Adequate safeguards must also be recognized for those who, after a life of work, retire or would like to go there. We intend to facilitate the outgoing flexibility with mechanisms compatible with the resilience of the presidential and social security system – I apologize – starting, in the short time available for the next budget law, from the renewal of the measures expiring at the end of the year, but the priority for the future must be a pension system that also guarantees the younger generations and those who will receive the check only on the basis of the contribution regime, because it is a social bomb that we continue to ignore, but which in the future will invest millions of current workers who will find themselves with checks even much lower than those, already inadequate, which are perceived today.
There is a theme of rampant poverty that we cannot ignore. His Holiness Pope Francis, to whom I address an affectionate greeting, recently reiterated an important concept: "Poverty – he said – cannot be fought with welfare, the door to a man's dignity is work". It is a profound truth that only those who have known poverty up close can truly appreciate. This is the path we intend to take: we want to maintain and, where possible, improve the necessary financial support for those who are actually fragile who are not in a position to work: I am thinking of retirees in difficulty, the disabled, who must be increased in every way the degree of protection, and also to those without income who have minor children to take care of. They will not be denied the necessary aid of the State, but for others, for those who are able to work, the solution cannot be the citizenship income, but work, training and accompaniment to work, even making full use of the resources and possibilities made available by the European Social Fund, because, for how it was conceived and implemented, the citizenship income represented a defeat for those who were able to do their part for Italy, as well as for themselves himself and his family.
And if there are different positions on citizenship income in this House, I am sure that we all agree on the importance of putting an end to the tragedy of accidents, including fatalities, at work. The theme here is not to introduce new rules, but rather to ensure the full implementation of those that exist, because, as the trade union also recalled, most recently with the demonstration last Saturday, we cannot accept that an 18-year-old boy like Giuliano De Seta – and I quote him to remember all the victims – leave the house to go to work and never return.
We need to bridge the gap between training and skills required by the labor market with specific training courses, of course, but even earlier thanks to school and university training that is more attentive to the dynamics of the labor market. Education is the most formidable tool to increase the wealth of a nation, from all points of view, because material capital is nothing if there is no human capital.
For this reason, schools and universities will once again be central to government action, because they represent a fundamental strategic resource for Italy, for its future and for its young people. He argued about our choice to revive the correlation between education and merit. I am frankly impressed. Several studies show how, today, those who live in a well-to-do family have an extra chance to recover the gaps of a flattened school system, while students with fewer resources are harmed by teaching that does not reward merit, because no one else will fill those gaps.
Italy is not a country for young people. Over time, our society has become increasingly disinterested in their future, even in the widespread phenomenon of those young people who exclude themselves from the training and work circuit, as well as in the growing emergency of deviations, made up of drugs, alcoholism, crime. And the pandemic has definitely worsened this condition and, in the face of this worrying scenario, the main proposal of some policy in recent months has been to promise everyone free cannabis, because it was the easiest answer. But we, unlike others, are not here to make it easier. We intend to: work on the growth of young people at 360 degrees, promote artistic and cultural activities and, alongside these, sport, an extraordinary tool for socializing, human formation and well-being; work on school education, mostly entrusted to the self-denial and talent of our teachers, often left alone to swim in a sea of structural, technological and motivational deficiencies; guaranteeing decent wages and protections, scholarships for the deserving, fostering business culture and the loan of honor. We owe it to these guys, from whom we took everything away to leave them only debts to repay! And we owe it to Italy, which 161 years ago was unified by the young heroes of the Risorgimento and which today, thanks to the enthusiasm and courage of its young people, can and must be rebuilt!
We know that the protection of the natural environment is particularly important to young people. We will take care of it, because, as Roger Scruton, one of the greatest masters of European conservative thought, wrote, "ecology is the most vivid example of the alliance between who is, who has been and who will come after us ". Protecting our natural heritage commits us exactly, like protecting the heritage of culture, traditions and spirituality, which we inherited from our fathers so that we could pass it on to our children. There is no more convinced ecologist than a conservative; but what distinguishes us from a certain ideological environmentalism is that we want to defend nature with man inside, combining environmental, economic and social sustainability. Accompanying businesses and citizens towards the green transition, without surrendering ourselves to new strategic dependencies and respecting the principle of technological neutrality: this will be our approach.
I think I know the universe of youth commitment quite well, a training ground for a wonderful life, regardless of the political ideas that one chooses to defend and promote. I confess that I will hardly be able not to feel a wave of sympathy even for those who will take to the streets to challenge the policies of our government, because inevitably a story that was mine will inevitably come back to my mind. I have participated in many events, I have organized many events in my life, and I think this has taught me much more than many other things have taught me. So, I want to talk to these guys who will inevitably take to the streets against us as well. I remember a phrase from Steve Jobs, who said: "Be hungry, be crazy". I would also like to add: "Be free", because the greatness of the human being is in free will.
Then there is another important educational institution, next to school and university, perhaps the most important of all, and it is obviously the family, the primary nucleus of our societies, the cradle of affections and the place where everyone's identity is formed. our; we intend to support and protect it and, with this, to support the birth rate, which in 2021 recorded the lowest birth rate since the unification of Italy to date; to get out of the demographic glaciation and return to produce those years of the future, that demographic GDP we need requires an imposing plan, economic but also cultural, to rediscover the beauty of parenting and put the family back at the center of society. It is, therefore, our commitment, also taken during the electoral campaign, to increase the amounts of the single universal allowance and help young couples to obtain a mortgage for their first home, also working progressively for the introduction of the family quotient. And since family projects go hand in hand with work, we want to encourage female employment in every way, rewarding those companies that adopt policies that offer effective solutions to reconcile home-work times and supporting municipalities to guarantee free nurseries. and open until the closing time of shops and offices. Italy needs a new intergenerational alliance, which has its pillar in the family and strengthens the bond that unites generations, children with grandparents, young people with the elderly, who in turn must be protected, valued and supported. , because they represent our roots and our history.
Montesquieu used to say that "freedom is that good that makes you enjoy every other good". Freedom is the foundation of a true society of opportunities, it is the freedom that must guide our action, freedom to be, to do, to produce. A center-right government will never limit the existing freedoms of citizens and businesses. We will see, under the test of facts, even on civil rights and abortion, who lied and who told the truth in the electoral campaign about what our real intentions were.
Freedom. Freedom and democracy are the distinctive elements of contemporary European civilization, in which I have always recognized myself and, therefore, even here, despite what has been argued instrumentally, I have never felt sympathy or closeness towards anti-democratic regimes; for no regime, including fascism, exactly as I have always considered the racial laws of 1938 the lowest point in Italian history, a shame that will mark our people forever.
The totalitarianisms of the twentieth century tore apart the whole of Europe, not just Italy, for more than half a century, in a succession of horrors that swept over most of the European states. And the horror and the crimes, whoever they are committed by, do not deserve any justifications and are not compensated for by other horrors and other crimes. In the abyss, the scores are never evened out: it just rushes.
I met the scent of freedom at a very young age, the anxiety for historical truth and the rejection of any form of abuse or discrimination by militating in the Italian democratic right. A community of men and women who have always acted in the open and fully in our republican institutions, even in the darkest years of criminalization and political violence, when, in the name of militant anti-fascism, innocent boys were shot and killed. wrench. That long season of mourning has perpetuated the hatred of the civil war and removed a national pacification that the Italian democratic right, more than any other, has always hoped for.
Since then, the political community from which I come has always made steps forward, towards a full and conscious historicization of the twentieth century, has taken on important government responsibilities, swearing on the Republican Constitution, as we had the honor to do just a few hours ago. He affirmed and embodied, without any ambiguity, the values of liberal democracy, which are the basis of the common identity of the Italian center-right and from which we will not deflect a single centimeter. We will fight all forms of racism, anti-Semitism, political violence and discrimination.
And there has been much discussion of freedom in the era of a pandemic. COVID entered our lives almost three years ago and led to the deaths of over 177,000 people in Italy. If we have come out of the emergency at the moment, it is above all thanks to the health personnel, the professionalism and self-denial with which it has saved thousands of human lives. Our gratitude goes to them once again. And, with them, my thanks go to the essential service workers, who have never stopped, and to the extraordinary reality of our Third Sector, the virtuous representative of those intermediate bodies that we consider vital for society.
Unfortunately, we cannot rule out a new wave of COVID or the emergence of a new pandemic in the future, but we can learn from the past to be ready. Italy has adopted the most restrictive measures in the entire West, severely limiting the fundamental freedoms of people and economic activities, but, despite this, it is among the states that have recorded the worst data in terms of mortality and infections. Something definitely did not work and, therefore, I want to say, as of now, that we will not, under any circumstances, replicate that model.
Correct information, prevention and empowerment are more effective than coercion, in all areas, and listening to doctors in the field is more valuable than guidelines written by some bureaucrat when dealing with chubby patients. and bones. Above all, if you ask citizens for responsibility, the first to have to demonstrate it are those who ask for it. It will be necessary to clarify what happened during the management of the pandemic crisis: it is due to those who lost their lives and those who did not spare themselves in hospital wards, while others were doing millionaire deals with the purchase and sale of masks and respirators.
Legality will be the guiding star of government action. I started doing politics at 15, as many know by now, in the aftermath of the via D'Amelio massacre, in which the mafia killed judge Paolo Borsellino. I started doing politics then, driven by the idea that we could not stand by and watch, that anger and indignation were somehow translated into civic commitment. The path that led me today to be Italian Prime Minister stems from the example of that hero. When, after reading the list of Ministers, I came to see President Fontana a couple of days ago, I entered Montecitorio and, when I found, at the beginning of the staircase and at the end of the staircase, a photo of Paolo Borsellino , I thought it came full circle.
We will face mafia cancer with our heads held high, as we have been taught by the many heroes who, with their courage, have set an example to all Italians, refusing to look away or run away even when they knew that tenacity would probably lead them. to death. Magistrates, politicians, escort agents, soldiers, ordinary citizens, priests; giants such as Giovanni Falcone, Francesca Morvillo, Rosario Livatino, Rocco Chinnici, Pio La Torre, Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, Piersanti Mattarella, Emanuela Loi, Libero Grassi, Don Pino Puglisi, and with them a very long list of men and women that we will not forget. The fight against the mafia will find us at the forefront; from this government criminals and mafia will have only contempt and inflexibility!
And legality also means a justice that works, with effective parity between prosecution and defense and a reasonable length of trials, which is not only a question of legal civilization and respect for the fundamental rights of citizens, but also of economic growth. The slowness of justice costs us at least one point of GDP per year, according to Bank of Italy estimates. We will work to give citizens back the guarantee of living in a safe nation, putting the fundamental principle of the certainty of punishment back at the center, thanks also to a new prison plan. Since the beginning of this year, 71 suicides have been in prison. It is not worthy of a civilized nation, as the working conditions of our prison police officers are often unworthy.
With the same determination we will also review the reform of the judiciary, to put an end to the current logic that undermines the credibility of the Italian judiciary. And let me say another thing: we have taken on the commitment to limit the excess of discretion in juvenile justice, with guaranteed and objective custody and adoption procedures, so that there are never more Bibbiano cases. We intend to carry out this commitment.
Italians feel the unbearable weight of insecure cities, in which there is no immediate protection, in which the absence of the state is perceived. We want to make a commitment to bring citizens closer to institutions, but also to bring the physical presence of the state back to every city. We want to make safety a distinctive feature of this Executive, alongside our law enforcement agencies, which I want to thank today, here, for the self-denial with which they carry out their work, in conditions that are often impossible and with a State that sometimes it gave the impression of being more sympathetic to those who undermined our security than it was to those who, on the other hand, risked their lives to guarantee it!
Of course, security and legality also concern the correct management of migratory flows. According to a simple principle: in Italy, as in any other serious state, one does not enter illegally; you enter legally, through the “flow decrees”.
In these years of terrible inability to find the right solutions to the various migratory crises, too many men, women and children have died at sea in an attempt to get to Italy. Too many times we have said "never again", only to repeat it over and over again. This government therefore wants to pursue a path that has been little traveled to date: to stop illegal departures, finally breaking up the trafficking of human beings in the Mediterranean.
Our intention is always the same, but, if you do not want us to talk about naval blockade, I say it like this: it is our intention to recover the original proposal of the European Union naval mission Sophia, which in the third phase, planned and never implemented, it provided for the blocking of the departures of boats from North Africa. We intend to propose it at European level, implement it in agreement with the authorities of North Africa, accompanied by the creation on African territories of hotspots managed by international organizations, where it is possible to examine asylum requests and distinguish who has the right to be accepted in Europe from those who do not have that right. it has it, because we do not intend, in any way, to question the right of asylum for those fleeing wars and persecutions!
All we want to do in relation to the issue of immigration is to prevent smugglers from making the selection to enter Italy.
And then there will be one last thing to do, perhaps the most important: remove the causes that lead migrants, especially the youngest, to abandon their land, their cultural roots and their family to seek a better life in Europe. Next 27 October will be the sixtieth anniversary of the death of Enrico Mattei, a great Italian who was one of the architects of post-war reconstruction, capable of entering into agreements of mutual convenience with nations all over the world. Here, I believe that Italy must promote a "Mattei plan" for Africa, a virtuous model of collaboration and growth between the European Union and African nations, also to counter the worrying spread of Islamist radicalism, especially in the area sub-Saharan. And so we would like to finally recover, after years of retreating, the strategic role that Italy has in the Mediterranean.
I am going to conclude, colleagues, obviously thanking you for your patience. It will not be an easy navigation, that of the Government which is preparing to ask Parliament for trust, due to the burden of the choices that we will be called to face, but also due to, let's say, a political prejudice that I often see in the analyzes that concern us. However, I believe that, in part, it is justified. After all, I am the first woman to arrive at the Prime Minister's Office, I come from a political history that has often been relegated to the margins of republican history and I do not get there in the arms of a favorable family context or thanks to important friendships; I am what the British would call an underdog, so to speak, the underdog, the one who, to succeed, must upset all predictions. This is what I intend to do again, overturn the predictions, with the help of a valid team of Ministers and Undersecretaries, with the trust and support of those who choose to vote for us, with the criticisms that will come from those who vote against this Government, because, at the end of this adventure, I will only be interested in one thing: knowing that we have done everything we could to give Italians a better nation. Sometimes we will succeed, sometimes we will fail, but rest assured that we will not back down, we will not throw in the towel, we will not betray.
On the day our Government swore the liturgical memorial of John Paul II, a Pontiff, a statesman, a Saint whom I had the honor to know personally, in the hands of the Head of State, it was. He taught me a fundamental thing that I have always treasured. "Freedom – he said – does not consist in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we must". I have always been a free person, I will always be a free person and, therefore, I intend to do exactly what I have to do.
Thank you.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/discorso-giorgia-meloni/ on Tue, 25 Oct 2022 13:43:50 +0000.