The two awaited constitutional provisions of the Government, a balanced budget and the abolition of the Provinces, have been finalized. This morning's Council of Ministers approved the constitutional bill for the creation of "metropolitan cities" and the transfer of provincial powers to the Regions. In eight articles, the bill establishes that "the implementation of this constitutional law must result in a reduction in the overall costs of the political and administrative bodies in each Region".
These provisions will also apply to the provinces of the regions with special statutes, with the exception of Trento and Bolzano. The other bill has also been approved, the one for the introduction of the principle of balanced budgets in the Constitution. Being laws modifying the Charter, according to article 138 of the Constitution, these bills must be approved twice by each branch of parliament and between the first and the second parliamentary passage no less than 3 months must pass. The second approval, then, must take place by an absolute majority.
The CDM's decision had an immediate positive effect on the markets. Piazza Affari accelerated the rise and gained 1,4% in the middle of the session. The spread fell below the threshold of 330 basis points, reaching a minimum of 328. In the following minutes, however, the differential rose again to 331.
