“Northern Italy is on the verge of an economic abyss that would drag our entire country back half a century, excluding it from the European context that matters. Is this what we want?”. This was stated this morning by the president of Confindustria, Giorgio Squinzi, in his speech at the annual meeting of industrialists.
The leader of the entrepreneurs underlined that the tactics of politics have caused Italy to waste "precious time and energy: we have all lost", for this reason it is necessary to put a hand on reforms "that can no longer be postponed, including the electoral law. We need one that ensures full legislatures and governmental stability".
WORK
According to Squinzi, “the labor market is too sticky and inefficient. It is necessary to ensure more flexibility in entry and in the retirement age to encourage generational turnover. On these issues, marginal adjustments are useless, in some cases harmful”.
As for the refinancing of the social safety nets, "it is vital - he continued - but I do not hide in all frankness my opposition to the way in which the Government has found the resources intended to finance the safety nets in derogation". The decision to cut resources for the agreements on productivity “involves the concrete risk, reported to the Government, of generating further unemployment – said the number one of Viale dell'Astronomia -. The resources intended to support employment, active policies and productivity must not be used for other purposes. For this they must be reinstated ".
The lack of work "is the mother of every social evil, but this theme must be faced in a structural and balanced way by intervening on the cost, productivity and rules", continued Squinzi, emphasizing however that "the social partners are the future of the country”, to the point that “we are one step, after sixty years, from defining rules on representation”.
TREASURY
The President of Confindustria reiterated that Italy has "a punitive tax system of unique intensity in the world", which affects "companies and workers" and "discourages investments and growth", being "even opaque, complicated and uncertain in the . The worst you can imagine for an investor. The Italian taxman seems to tell entrepreneurs that growing is not convenient, because as size increases, administrative, tax and social security burdens increase".
Despite knowing the "state of the public finances" and knowing that "there is no room for major interventions", Squinzi underlined that "many things can still be done. The tax burden can be rebalanced and must not be used against those who produce: companies and workers". In 2012 the tax wedge “was over 53% of labor costs, among the highest in the OECD area. This means that more than half of what companies pay to workers goes into the state coffers. We need to reduce this wedge by eliminating the cost of labor from the Irap taxable base and cutting the social security contributions that weigh on manufacturing companies by at least 11 points”.
CREDITS OF COMPANIES WITH THE PA
The number one of the industrialists then issued a warning to the government: "If for some reason our credit is used for other purposes - he said -, those who govern us know that the relationship with the entrepreneurs will be irreparably compromised". Squinzi thanked the President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, for having launched "a strong message on the payment of PA debts. We now have 40 billion on the plate to be recovered as soon as possible and we are working on the entire PA debt. This is a real and its own financial maneuver for companies, unexpected and that many gave up for lost. We haven't made it yet. It's not perfect and we're committed to improving it."
CREDIT OF BANKS TO COMPANIES
According to Squinzi, the credit situation “makes it almost impossible not to invest, but to manage ordinary businesses e. It endangers their survival. This is why the injection of liquidity into the system is of primary importance”. The president of Confindustria recalled that the stock of loans disbursed to businesses has dropped by 50 billion euros in the last eighteen months, "an unprecedented cut in the post-war period", and that "almost a third of businesses have insufficient liquidity with respect to operational needs ”. Squinzi then launched an appeal to the banks for a "new credit agreement to support businesses in this delicate economic phase, laying the foundations for future development".
