- More than 21 billion euros will support households and businesses in the face of soaring utility bills.
- The measures aid in paying electricity bills and fatter tax credits for companies whose energy costs have been rising steadily.
Italy’s new far-right government unveiled its 2023 draft budget on Tuesday, with most of the nearly 35 billion euros in spending on the energy crisis rather than flashy electoral promises. More than 21 billion euros will support households and businesses in the face of soaring utility bills, leaving little left over for voter-pleasing pledges, such as significant tax cuts.
The measures aid in paying electricity bills and fatter tax credits for companies whose energy costs have been rising steadily. According to an economic roadmap adopted by Rome, the deficit is forecast to fall to 3.7 per cent in 2024 and three per cent in 2025. The former chief economist at the Treasury, Lorenzo Codogno, said: “With the global economy slowing down and interest rates rising, it is forced to remain cautious and carry out what electoral promises it can, a bit at a time”.
Employees will benefit from tax reductions of two per cent for income up to 35,000 euros per year, as under Mario Draghi, and three per cent for those salaries below 20,000 euros. The new measures will be financed partly by reforming the so-called citizens’ income, a poverty relief scheme that Meloni has said will no longer allow adults to work. The government is also set to raise new revenues from a windfall tax on energy companies.