Repeatedly postponed, the Council of Ministers at the end of the evening approved the Sostegni decree, a 32 billion euro provision in which the resources of the budget deviation approved by the Chambers in January will be used in order to help families, workers and businesses.
The government has overcome the tug of war on tax bills. In the end it was decided that the old tax records will be cancelled up to 5 euros between 2000 and 2010 (instead of 2015) and only for those who fall within a income ceiling of 30 thousand euros. On opposing positions Lega and Forza Italia on the one hand, which asked for a sort of "maxi amnesty" for all bills up to 5 thousand euros accrued from 2005 to 2015, and on the other the other political forces, Pd and Leu in primis, he decided to limit the times and establish on which folders to trigger the block. Once the obstacle has been overcome, the decree law with "Urgent measures to support businesses and economic operators, work, health and territorial services, connected to the covid 19 emergency" has been approved.
"A complex decree, it is addressed to a large audience, whose pillars are the support of businesses, work and the fight against poverty", said the premier Mario Draghi at ease in the first press conference as Prime Minister. “We have done the maximum possible within the budget gap but it is a first step, we are all in agreement on this. Our goal is to distribute as much money and as fast as possible. The decree is worth 32 billion and 11 will go to businesses. There will be a platform to carry out these payouts starting April 8 for those who have applied: if all goes as planned, 11 billion will enter the economy in the month of April”. "It is necessary to accompany companies and workers on the path to exiting the pandemic - continued Draghi - this is a year in which money is not asked, money is given, the time will come to look at debt but this is not the time to think about the Stability Pact”. Just enough time to answer a question about AstraZeneca: “Yes, I will get the vaccine with AstraZeneca. My son has done this before in London. I have no bias, no doubts."
WATCH THE VIDEO of press conference of the president Mario Draghi with the ministers Franco and Orlando
All the other measures contained in the draft of the Sostegni decree, on the other hand, had already found the agreement of the various components of the majority. Here are the main measures.
TAX PAYMENTS
"It is clear that the State has no longer worked on the folders, a State that has allowed the accumulation of millions and millions of folders that cannot be claimedsomething has to change". Mario Draghi did not mince words to explain the mountain of tax bills that have accumulated over the years: in the meantime many debtor companies have been canceled or the natural persons who should have paid the debt have died. In fact, a large part of the backlog has become uncollectable. And so, Draghi adds, in the Sostegni decree there will also be “a part that provides a change in collection, a small reform of the collection, control and unloading” of the files. “Without it – he explains – in a couple of years we would still have had millions of folders to ask for”.
In addition to the amnesty, the provision provides for the simplified definition of amicable notices on the 2017 and 2018 tax periods for subjects who suffered a 30% drop in turnover compared to 2019. Finally, the extension of the suspension of enforced collection activities until 30 April.
BUSINESSES
Almost a third of the allocations provided for by the Sostegni decree will be used to provide refreshments to companies with a turnover of less than 10 million euros which in 2020 recorded losses of more than 30% compared to 2019 revenues. Five different revenue bands are foreseen ranging from 60% for smaller companies with a turnover of up to 100 to 20% for the larger ones. According to estimates, the audience of beneficiaries will be made up of 5,5 million businesses (including those born in 2019 and 2020). Businesses will be able to choose between bank transfers and tax credits: the aid will be a minimum of 1000 euros for natural persons (2000 for legal entities) and will reach a maximum of 150 euros.
SELF-EMPLOYED AND PROFESSIONAL WORKERS
In favor of self-employed, the Government has allocated one and a half billion euros, money that will be used to finance the exemption from social security contributions due by self-employed workers and professionals who "have received in the 2019 tax period a total income not exceeding 50.000 euros and have suffered a drop in turnover, or fees in 2020 of no less than 33%, compared to those in 2019". The beneficiaries of the measure will be those enrolled in the separate management of INPS, those associated with private and privatized social security institutions and those enrolled in the special management of the Ago (compulsory general insurance).
THE SKI
700 million euros are earmarked for the mountain areas affected by the total closure imposed on ski resorts for the winter season. The resources will flow into a fund at the Ministry of the Economy and will be distributed on the basis of the rules established by a subsequent decree that the Ministry of Tourism will issue within the next 30 days. 70% of these funds will go to the activities of the mountain municipalities which in 2019 recorded tourist presences 3 times higher than the number of residents and the remaining 30% to the other municipalities, ski instructors and schools.
TERM CONTRACTS
The Sostegni decree extends the suspension of the provisions of the dignity decree. "Until 31 December 2021 - reads the document -, without prejudice to the maximum overall duration of 24 months, it is possible to renew or extend for a maximum period of 12 months and only once fixed-term employment contracts".
CIG AND BLOCK OF LICENSES
The Government has extended the block on layoffs until June, establishing that for companies that do not take advantage of the Covid layoffs, the block must be extended until October. Companies that have the ordinary redundancy fund will be able to request 13 weeks between 1 April and 30 June 2021 with a Covid causal without additional contribution (especially industry and agriculture). A maximum of 28 weeks between 1 April and 31 December 2021 is foreseen for workers who are not protected by ordinary shock absorbers but have the solidarity check or the derogating cash register (especially tertiary). Also in this case no additional contribution is required.
VACCINES
4,5 billion of the 32 allocated will be used for vaccines (2,1) and for drugs that treat Covid (700 million). 1,4 billion will be allocated to the Commissioner's tasks (storage, logistics, information campaigns). A further 345 million will be used to involve general practitioners, outpatient specialists, free-choice paediatricians and continuity of care doctors in the vaccination campaign. 51,6 million will go to Covid Hospitals, while 50 million will be used as additional remuneration for pharmacies.
The document also provides that the incompatibilities provided for by the rules on the exclusivity of the employment relationship will not apply to the nurses of the National Health Service, involved "outside the hours of service". The draft specifies that the derogation applies "exclusively for carrying out the vaccination activity". Furthermore, the administration of vaccines, experimental for 2021, will take place with specially trained pharmacists.
LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND SCHOOLS
About 2,5 billion will go to the financial endowments of local authorities and will be divided between the Regions, Autonomous Provinces and Metropolitan Cities and also those Municipalities that have suffered losses caused by the lack of income from tourist taxes. 150 million will be allocated to the school for 2021. Resources which, according to the draft, will be used to purchase hygiene products but also for the pedagogical and psychological assistance of students and teachers.
Last updated March 20, 2021 at 10:06am
