“Europe is our home, it is the home of all of us: as a founding country we are fully entitled to claim a stronger and also fairer Union. The elimination of the growth gap between Italy and the EU is our goal. The public debt is fully sustainable: its reduction must be pursued but in a perspective of stable and sustainable growth. These issues will be forcefully brought to Europe for an adaptation of its governance. We are moderately optimistic about the outcome of these discussions and confident in our negotiating strength. Italy's interests coincide with the interests of Europe and with the aim of preventing its possible decline”. The new Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, said it in the keynote speech with which he asked for confidence in the Senate today and which he will deliver in the Chamber tomorrow. In the evening at Palazzo Madama the vote of confidence passed with 171 votes in favour, 117 no, 25 abstentions.
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Below are the other key points of Conte's speech.
I HAVE NO EXPERIENCE, BUT I AM MOVED ONLY BY A SPIRIT OF SERVICE
“I am well aware of the prerogatives that article 95 of the Constitution grants to the Prime Minister. As you know, I have no political experience: I am a citizen who has said he is willing to lead the government, also guaranteeing the implementation of the programme. I am moved by nothing but a spirit of service. I propose myself to you and through you to the citizens as the lawyer who will protect the interests of the entire Italian people”.
THE PROGRAM IS NEITHER OF THE RIGHT OR OF THE LEFT
“There are no longer political forces that express, as once upon a time, overall visions of the world based on strongly identifiable ideological systems. The end of ideologies dates back to decades ago. The government contract was judged by both the right and the left. Personally, I think it is more profitable to distinguish political orientations on the basis of the ability to protect the fundamental rights of the person”.
IT'S TRUE: LEGA AND M5S ARE POPULIST AND ANTI-SYSTEM FORCES
“The governing forces of the majority have been defined as populist and anti-system. If populism is the inclination to listen to the demands of the people, if anti-system means wanting to introduce a new system without encrustations, well these political forces deserve both these qualifications. The change will not only be in the words and style, but in the method, which will be articulated on three fronts. First listening, then performing, finally checking. These are the pillars, in the name of full transparency".
THE CENTRAL POINTS OF THE PROGRAM
“The change in content will be that the first concern of this government will be social rights, which have been progressively dismantled over the last few years. Citizens have the right to a minimum hourly wage, a citizen's income and to one decent pension. debt we want to reduce it but with the growth of our wealth, not with austerity, which in recent years has helped to increase it. We will end the business ofimmigration, which has grown dramatically under the cloak of feigned solidarity. We will fight the corruption with innovative methods such as the Daspo to the corrupt and the strengthening of the undercover agent. We want a country fit for citizens disabled, and there are millions, who too often find themselves left to themselves and their families. We want to sever the link between politics and Health to finally make this efficient throughout the national territory. We will increase the funds to guarantee the security in every city".
WORK: WE WANT A NEW SOCIAL PACT
“In terms of work, we want to build a new transparent and fair social pact, based on solidarity but also on commitment. We want to give a voice to the many young people who can't find work: to those who move abroad and to those who remain inactive here. We want to give a voice to the many women who are still unacceptably discriminated against and less paid in the workplace and who feel alone when they decide to give birth to a child".
ENVIRONMENT: NO COMPROMISES FOR OTHER PURPOSES
“Government action will be focused on the development of the circular economy and on the control of hydrogeological risk. We will work to accelerate the decarbonisation of our production system. We are not willing to sacrifice the environment for other ends”.
WE REMAIN US ALLIES, BUT WE OPEN TO RUSSIA
“We reaffirm our country's convinced membership of the Atlantic Alliance, with the United States as a traditionally privileged ally. But beware: we will be promoting an opening towards Russia, which has consolidated its international role in various geopolitical crises in recent years. We will promote a review of the sanctions”.
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COSTS OF POLITICS AND GOLDEN PENSIONS
“In recent years we have seen public services reduced, but the privileges of politics and its wastes have remained intact: this government intends to act resolutely. It is not a merely symbolic question. If ordinary citizens face difficulties and humiliations on a daily basis, it is not tolerable that the political class does not draw the necessary consequences in terms of their economic treatment. It is necessary to make a cut in pensions, introducing for all the pension system of normal pensioners. The so-called golden pensions are another unjustifiable privilege: we will make a cut to those exceeding 5 euros per month in the part not covered by the contributions paid".
JUSTICE: TRIALS, CERTAINTY OF PENALTIES, PRESCRIPTION
“In matters of justice, our goal is to rebuild citizens' trust. Trials cost too much and take too long. This applies to citizens and businesses and is a limit to growth and an obstacle to the arrival of foreign investments. It serves simplification and reduction of process times. We will increase the penalties for the crime of sexual violenceas well as fair compensation for the victims. We will insure the certainty of punishment to prevent honest citizens from losing faith in justice. Where necessary we will increase the number of prisons also to improve the living conditions of prisoners, without prejudice to the rehabilitative function of the sentence. We will also reform the prescription, which must be returned to its original function and not reduced to a mere expedient to escape due process".
FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION AND MAFIA
“We will strengthen the strategies to fight against corruption and criminal powers. We will increase the penalties for crimes against the public administration: we will introduce the Daspo for corrupt and corrupting people, we will strengthen the action of undercover agents; those who report the criminal acts taking place in their offices will be better protected. We will oppose the mafias by all means, attacking their economies and hitting the networks of relationships that allow the mafias to enter the socio-economic fabric".
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
“The conflict of interests is a worm that prevents development according to the rules of free competition: individuals who have to pursue collective interests impartially are often caught pursuing their own personal gain. We're going to change the law to include any benefit you can get from your position."
CITIZENSHIP INCOME AND PENSIONS
“Even in Italy as in other countries, inequalities have worsened. Those who live in conditions of hardship are prevented from fully developing their own personality. The goal is to ensure income support for families most affected by socio-economic hardship. The benefit will be commensurate with the composition of the family unit and will be conditional on professional training and job reintegration. In the first phase we will reform the job centres, then the actual economic support will arrive. We will also introduce a citizen's pension".
IMMIGRATION: REVIEW THE DUBLIN TREATY
“It is clear to everyone that the management of migratory flows has been a failure. The EU has allowed the selfish closure of various member states that have unloaded the burdens that should have been shared on the border countries. This is why we will forcefully ask for the reform of the Dublin Treaty to change the mechanism for relocating asylum seekers. From the very first positive conversation I had with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, I strongly emphasized this point. And the words you recently spoke testify to the awareness that Italy cannot be left alone in the face of such challenges”.
WE ARE NOT RACISTS, BUT WE WILL STRENGTHEN REPATRIATION
“We are not and never will be racist. We want the procedures for ascertaining refugee status to be certain and fast. We defend and will defend the immigrants who arrive legally in our territory, work, integrate into our community and make a decisive contribution to the development of the country. But to ensure integration we must not only fight the trafficking of human beings perpetrated by smugglers: we must also reorganize and make the reception system efficient, in the allocation of public funds and eliminating any infiltration of organized crime. If the legal conditions for the permanence of immigrants are not met, we will work to make the repatriation procedures effective".
FLAT TAX AND PRISON FOR GREAT EVADERS
“Our tax system is outdated and no longer respects socio-economic reality. It is paradoxical: large companies manage to hide their wealth in tax havens, while small companies and taxpayers remain crushed by the tax burden. We promise to introduce revolutionary measures leading to a total overhaul of the tax system: the goal is the flat tax, or a tax reform characterized by fixed rates with a system of deductions that guarantees the progressiveness of the tax to protect constitutional principles. Only in this way will it be possible to reduce tax avoidance and evasion, increasing the tax base, in addition to consumption. I like to talk about 'financial alliance'. But it is also necessary to tighten up the current sanctioning framework and ensure real prison for the great tax evaders”.
HEALTHCARE: WE WILL INCREASE FUNDS AND EFFICIENCY
“The Def foresees a contraction in healthcare spending: it will be the task of this government to reverse this trend to ensure the necessary equity in access to care. Socio-economic differences cannot and must not be discriminatory for the purposes of protecting the health of our citizens. We will pursue greater efficiency in the delivery of services. The government will work with the Regions to this end. We want waiting list times to be reduced, we want the apical appointments of managerial structures in the healthcare world to take place on the basis of exclusively meritocratic criteria, protected from undue political influence".
INTERNET IS A FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT
“In terms of the internet, we must ensure that the direction of development is fully compatible with the protection of fundamental human rights, strengthening certain legal guarantees. Internet access must be guaranteed to all citizens as a fundamental right and a precondition for the exercise of fundamental rights. It is also necessary to guarantee the protection of personal data”.
REVIEW THE BANKRUPTCY LAW
"We want to review the bankruptcy law to abandon a purely sanctioning logic and address the phenomenon of business crisis in a broad and articulated way, which is much more complex".
RECOVER DIALOGUE WITH UNIONS AND ASSOCIATIONS
“This government intends to recover social dialogue with the representative associations of workers and businesses. We have to redefine the principle of representativeness, which is in decline. If the proposals of the associations are in the collective interest, they will be appreciated and taken into consideration”.
