The Italian Prime Minister has announced a major overhaul of Italy’s economy signaling a shift from previous governments on state benefits. Giorgia Meloni’s plan includes a phase-out by the end of next year of the so-called “citizens’ wage,” the crowning achievement of the 5-Star Movement, which was in power from 2018-2021.
Ms Meloni had vowed to abolish the expanded welfare program altogether during the campaign, arguing that it encouraged people to stay on welfare when they could work and was abused by fraudsters.
The changes announced on Tuesday would knock eligible workers out of the system after eight months or after they refuse a job offer, and require recipients to actually live in Italy.
The overall budget modifications show a clear political shift, doing away with a basic income and a decade-old pension reform that Ms Meloni and her right-wing allies have long attacked while coming up with new measures to promote Italy’s perennially low birth rate.
Most of the money was earmarked to maintain campaign promises to offer further help to families and businesses coping with a surge in energy costs, and was on top of more than 60 billion euros already pledged by the previous government of Mario Draghi.
The Prime Minister said the “courageous” and clear political choices focused on two main priorities: helping Italian industry grow despite the energy crisis sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and socio-economic initiatives for low-income families.
The bulk of the adjustment went to tax credits and other measures to help businesses keep producing while also incentivising them to hire women and young workers. Italy has one of the lowest rates of women in the workplace in the OECD.
The Italian leader also outlined a series of initiatives to address Italy’s low birthrate.
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“We continue to look at today, not realizing we won’t have a tomorrow,” she said of the declining birthrate.
Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini also announced changes to the pension system, saying people who continue working after 41 years of contributing into the pension system would receive a 10 percent bonus.
He also announced that the government had taken the first steps to reactivate a decades-long, on-again-off-again project to build a bridge between Sicily and the Italian mainland and intended to seek EU funding for it.