ROME. At the end of March, the government will reassess the situation and, if necessary, will put in place new measures to counter high energy costs by using any additional revenue and cost savings. Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti underlines this in the introduction to the budget planning document.
A few days after the green light in the Council of Ministers of the Budget Law, the government sent the Draft Budgetary Document for 2023 (Dpb) to the European Commission and the Italian Parliament.
«At the end of March – continues Giorgetti – in view of the preparation of the 2023 Stability Programme, the Government will reassess the situation and, if necessary, will implement new measures to combat high energy costs, using as a priority any additional income and cost savings that may arise in the first months of the year”.
Dpb: temporary aid until energy prices fall
The minister writes again: “A ‘targeted’ approach means that, although the energy cost mitigation policy is aimed at all citizens and all businesses, a significant portion of the resources allocated is aimed at supporting the weakest sections of the population and those businesses that find themselves in the greatest difficulty, not being able to translate the strong cost increases into prices in the face of international competition that benefits from lower energy and material costs”. “The adjective “temporary” underlines how the Government undertakes to reduce and then eliminate aid and tax cuts as soon as the prices of natural gas, energy and fuel return to levels in line with the pre- crisis”.
Support businesses and families
«It is therefore necessary to continue and strengthen aid to businesses and households, making it even more targeted, incisive and differentiated. This is to ensure that budgetary resources are spent wisely and, at the same time, situations of strong competitive disadvantage are not created to the detriment of Italian companies and poverty and social hardship do not worsen» continues the minister.
Pnrr will give a strong boost to growth
The premise of the Dpb continues: “Since taking office, the government has dedicated its utmost efforts to ensure that the implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan accelerates despite the presence of obstacles such as the rise in the prices of materials and works public. In the budget manoeuvre, specific resources will be allocated for this purpose. The grounding of the Pnrr will give a strong boost – concludes Giorgetti – to the quantitative and qualitative growth of the Italian economy, also contributing to improving the sustainability of the public debt».