“The Commission’s position on the Italian budget remains unchanged. It was a translation error during a TV interview, in which vice president Valdis Dombrovskis was asked a specific question about the Italian budget plan for 2024. The topic was not raised proactively by the vice president”. This was underlined by a spokesperson for the EU Commission regarding this morning’s interview with Dombrovskis. Dombrovskis reiterated the Commission’s opinion of 21 November, which states that the DBP is not fully in line with the Council recommendation of 14 July 2023,” it explains.
“Italy is not in line with our recommendations”. The EU’s new warning on the Italian maneuver comes from Davos. The author of the criticism is the vice president of the Commission Valdis Dombrovskis, the man who usually dresses as a policeman bad in the assessments of the public finances of the member countries. His opinion, actuallyis none other than what the European executive itself has written in black and white in November. But, as a guest on Skytg24, the commissioner reiterated it with some clarity. Too much, perhaps, at a time when prudence reigns in Brussels. “The Commission’s position on the maneuver is that of November, it has not changed”, a spokesperson for Palazzo Berlaymont adjusted in the evening. The executive’s intervention several hours after Dombrovskis’ interview served to clarify two points in particular. First of all, it was recalled, Italy is not “fully” in line with the recommendations, which is a less forceful phrase than the one pronounced by the Latvian commissioner. Secondly, in November the Commission did not ask Italy for corrective measures but “invited” the government to “be ready” to intervene.
In the meantime, the Mef had also responded to Dombrovskis, explaining that there is nothing new in the commissioner’s intervention. And remembering the November response from Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti: “everything as expected: despite the legacy of the negative impact of energy and Superbonus, we move forward with healthy realism”.
A storm in a teacup, in short. At least for now. “We asked Italy to take deviations and get back in line”, were the (too clear) words of Dombrovskis, who also pointed out that any deficit procedures will only arrive in the spring. After June 9th in particular. That is, after the European Championships. With an appendix: with the vote now upon us, the EU leaders, starting with Ursula von der Leyen (who by 21 February will confirm or not her increasingly probable entry into the field), are moving using the carrot, rather than the stick, as ultimately also emerged in another very thorny Italian dossier, that of the Balneari. Of course, a certain disappointment remains tangible in the buildings of Brussels over Rome’s no to the ESM reform. A no to which the Commission does not give up.
“The discussions continue with Italy. Obviously it is up to the Italian Parliament to decide what the next steps forward are to be taken, “we hope to be able to see them as soon as possible”, Dombrovskis underlined, not surprisingly. The match, for In short, Brussels is open. And obviously the final evaluation of the maneuver is open. Dombrovskis, after all, photographed a critical issue that existsalso certified by the Parliamentary Budget Office according to which the government must be “ready to use measures in accordance with the EU recommendations”.
Last November, Italy was included in the group of postponed countries – or under observation – together with, for example, Germany, the Netherlands or Malta. These are countries that must be ready to implement adequate corrective measures.
According to the EU, Italy’s net public spending in 2024 will only formally increase by 0.9%, given that, due to the super bonus, spending is 0.8% higher than what was recommended by Brussels. To this must be added the high debt figure and the government’s decision – which the EU liked – to use the funds diverted from aid for high energy costs not to reduce spending but to cut the tax wedge.
“Italy “only partially respects” the Council’s recommendation regarding support interventions against high energy prices”, recalled the PBO. “Everyone get ready, because for the country – already reduced to zero growth – a corrective maneuver will come with further cuts and taxes”, underlined the vice-president of the M5S, Mario Turco, evoking the most leaden scenario for Giorgia Meloni. In the meantime, the FI group leader in the Senate, Maurizio Gasparri, responded to Dombrovskis: “Exams never end, perhaps Dombrovskis’ mandate ends…”.
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