“Renzi reminds me of Blair, while Gentiloni I would compare him to Mitterrand and his 'quiet strength'. Between the two, now, the better prime minister would be the latter: Gentiloni was an excellent foreign minister and he surprised us as head of the government. He has the same firmness as Renzi in carrying out the reforms, but with a more conciliatory tone ”. Riccardo Illy, coffee entrepreneur and with a past in politics, always in the centre-left, between the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region and Parliament, returns to public life after ten years of hiatus: "I had an ethical bond that prevented me from taking on public offices: an account opened with the Court of Auditors, which I resolved in January with full acquittal . At that point the Democratic Party, which was making the lists, contacted me. And I said yes." Illy is a candidate for the Senate with the centre-left coalition (Pd, Insieme, +Europa and Civica Popolare) in the constituency of Trieste and Gorizia and runs only in the single-member election: "Without a parachute, without a party card, which I've never had, and without constraints of discipline: I strongly support the program of the Democratic Party, but I am independent”. From the economy to Europe, from migrants to pensions, his interview with FIRSTonline on the eve of the vote.
President Illy: why did he come back, and why as an independent candidate?
“I am independent in the sense that I do not run for any particular party, but I am the candidate in my constituency, in the Senate, for the entire centre-left coalition. I came back because I see that while the economy has improved, even if some critical issues remain such as the unemployment rate which is too high, in the meantime the distrust of citizens towards politics and institutions has increased: as an entrepreneur and with a past of 15 years in politics, I want to try to bring these two worlds together. I fully agree with the Pd's program but I consider myself a free hitter: once I enter Parliament, I will support the coalition as long as I agree with its proposals".
According to polls, it will be difficult for the center-left to win the elections: but if it were to succeed, what would be the name of the prime minister to suggest to Colthe?
Paul Gentiloni. I see something of Mitterrand in him, his 'quiet strength' is preferable above all in the very probable prospect of a government of broad understandings. He was excellent at the Farnesina and amazed everyone at Palazzo Chigi: determined on reforms but conciliatory in tone. Matteo Renzi, on the other hand, is more like Tony Blair: unscrupulous, less diplomatic, but I define him as a phoenix. He is still young, he will rise from his ashes”.
Her return was also prompted by the results achieved by the outgoing government, which she considers encouraging. In particular, you argued that it is not true that the Italian GDP has grown less than others. Can you explain why?
“On the basis of the EU data relating to 2017, albeit provisional, the Italian GDP per capita grew by 1,52%, the American one by 1,45%, the German one by 1,32% and the French one only by '1,07%. This is because the Italian population has decreased, the balance between births and deaths is strongly negative and therefore also for this reason we have produced less wealth in absolute figures. Wealth which, however, has increased more than elsewhere, if considered per capita. It is true that per capita GDP is of little interest to the financial world, but it is very important for our awareness: we are in an acceleration phase”.
Among the reforms of the last executive, as an entrepreneur do you consider the Jobs Act or Industry 4.0 more important?
“Undoubtedly the Jobs Act, in the first place because it was aimed at all businesses and not just industrial ones. I'll give you a fact: one year after the introduction of the Jobs Act, companies with more than 15 employees (that is, all excluding micro companies) have grown in number by 50%, going from 8.000 to 12.000. However, Industry 4.0 was also a very positive measure, absolutely to be refinanced and to be extended to all businesses and the Public Administration: we also need to digitize the relationship between citizens and institutions, go beyond Industry 4.0 and aim for Society 4.0".
Despite the reforms, which have created an economic climate that you consider more favourable, the entrepreneurs themselves and the voters in general do not seem too inclined to restore confidence in the centre-left, but rather to prefer the recipes of Berlusconi and Salvini. Why, in your opinion?
“For a number of factors. First of all because the centre-left has made mistakes. Exaggerated by the media, which in Italy have the habit of being too sensationalist, but he committed them. First of all, the referendum: I'm not discussing the contents, but there weren't the conditions to make such an important reform of the institutional set-up. Then also on some single law, such as that of the procurement code for example: a rule that will not solve the fight against crime, ending up penalizing the Public Administration and serious businesses. There was also a communication defect that led the electorate away from the Democratic Party: the Government was busy doing things and did not communicate well. Finally, there was a particularly virulent anti-systemic and anti-European opposition”.
Anti-Europeanism is based above all on reluctance to respect budget constraints and market rules. As an entrepreneur and politician, what is your answer?
“That we must not observe the constraints just because we are obliged to, but because it is in our interest to do so. Italy is currently 'protected' by the ECB's policy, but what will we do when rates rise again, i.e. already by the end of 2018? Frankfurt is now buying our debt at bargain prices, but we have to be ready to go back to the market, otherwise our debt will be burdened by very high interest rates. Let's remember that, to date, we have a higher spread than the Spanish one".
Europe also means the United States of Europe: a strong point in the program of the Democratic Party and Emma Bonino, which she particularly agrees with.
"Yes. With the exit of the United Kingdom, which was somewhat of a brake on full integration, the confirmation of Angela Merkel as Chancellor and the election of Macron in France, unique and perhaps unrepeatable conditions have been created for relaunching the idea of a confederation of states. According to our proposal, sovereignty would remain with the individual countries, but with the possibility of delegating it to Brussels, for example in matters of defense and foreign policy. A France-Germany-Italy axis is really within reach. Could some countries disagree? Patience, if this is the case, not all countries join Schengen and not all countries join the euro”.
Among the central points of his personal program are pensions. Can you explain your proposal to us?
“From the point of view of economic sustainability, as I have already said and I repeat, the current law we have is the best in the world. We switched to a fully contributory system and introduced the indexation of the retirement age with respect to life expectancy: ours, together with the German one, is now the most sustainable system in the world. However, some problems remain open, only partially resolved, related to exodus. I propose a flexible solution: the median age established by the Fornero law has been confirmed, but it will be possible to retire earlier, with a discount on the allowance, or to retire later, with a premium. After making the proposal, I read a survey according to which 36% of Italians agree with me”.
On environmental policies, you propose to go ahead with the incentives for renewable energies.
“I think it would be good to make a final round of incentives, in order to reinforce the virtuous spiral and to make renewable sources more and more convenient, before letting them go on their own. In a few decades, in this way, energy will be cleaner and cheaper: excellent news for the environment and for the economy”.
As far as your region is concerned, you have put forward a proposal on high-speed rail, to complete the famous Corridor 5 and create the long-awaited Trieste-Budapest connection. How would you intend to finance it?
“We have to build the Trieste-Lubjana-Budapest axis, but so far Slovenia is reluctant to do its part. I therefore propose to make a European work, with a small contribution from Slovenia and the rest financed with Eurobonds. It would be an interesting experiment and we would go to fill that hole in Corridor 5 (that connects Lisbon to Kiev, ed) that is now between Italy and Hungary”.
Returning to national politics, another major theme of this campaign is migrants. How do you judge the action of the last government in controlling the phenomenon?
“I appreciated Minister Minniti, but the speech should be set up differently. The migrants have to arrive, our balance between births and deaths is too negative and we need human and professional resources to support the welfare system. However, we need to manage the process better, choosing who to bring and how, and putting in place the necessary integration policies".
What would be your first proposal as a senator, should you be elected?
“Repeal ten old laws for every new one that Parliament passes. We have 40.000 laws, they are too many, we need to bring them to 10.000. And for this reason I will also propose the approval of ten consolidated texts on the ten most important subjects, from banks to work, which will be written by ten universities, the most knowledgeable in the various fields, in order to streamline the legal system".
Do you define yourself as a leftist?
“I define myself as a progressive. I believe in the values of the sensitive company, of the ethical company. As an entrepreneur I have always taken care of my employees, of all stakeholders, of the society and the environment that are part of the territory in which I live and in which my company operates”.
