Helping Spain would cost Italy one and a half points of GDP. This is the effect that the contribution to a possible international plan in favor of Marid would have on our public finances. It was the alarm that was raised the Minister of Economy, Vittorio Grilli, in an interview with Repubblica.
“Italy would bear the higher cost – underlined the minister -. Already in the last two years, our public debt has increased by four points due to loans to Greece, Ireland and Portugal. If aid to Spain is triggered, for no less than 100 billion, the Italian share will be equal to another point and a half of GDP. In short, we must be generous, but we must also carefully evaluate the impact on public finances, especially as we are still going through a very, very difficult economic phase”.
Grilli then reiterated once again that Italy will not ask for interventions from the ECB or the Salva-Stati fund, "because we don't need them".
as to new law of stability, who lands in the Chamber today, "we wanted to send a strong signal to the country - continued the minister -: rigor is bearing fruit and we can begin to return these fruits to the citizens, starting a process of reducing the tax burden".
Then, self-defense: “I understand the criticisms on some specific points of the measure – explained Grilli – But here, for the first time in a long time, we are cutting the Irpef rates on the lowest incomes by two percentage points. This signal must be received, from politics and society, because it is positive. But if even this is transformed into a negative signal in the daily controversy, then it becomes suicide for the country". The main criticism leveled against the government however, it is related to the increase in VAT from next July, which risks canceling out the beneficial effects given by the cut in income tax.
Grilli admitted that some points of the maneuver could be corrected: “The government is available to discuss and accept the improvement proposals that will come from the political forces in Parliament", but only on condition "that the balances are not altered and that it does not change the overall meaning of the manoeuvre".
