Fifteen minutes. That was enough for the cabinet to approve the law decree which introduces changes in the justice sector. However, the original text iincluded cybersecurity measures, these have been postponed "for further technical investigations", breaking the rules on the subject. The speed of the meeting, which also started an hour and a half late, was characterized by theabsence of Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who did not participate "for personal reasons", returning to Milan shortly before the start of the Council.
The meeting was thelast for Raffaele Fitto as Minister for European Affairs, the South, Cohesion Policies and the PNRR. From 1 December, Fitto will take on the role of Executive Vice-President of the European Commission and with responsibility for Cohesion and Reforms.
But what was approved, then?
Extension of the elections of the judicial councils
Among the provisions of the decree is the postponement of the elections for the judicial councils and the Board of Directors of the Court of Cassation, initially scheduled for 2024. These will now be postponed to April 2025, as confirmed by the Ministry of Justice.
Amazon's strategic investment approved
The Council of Ministers approved the resolution which recognizes thestrategic interest of Amazon web services plan (Aws) for an investment of 1,2 billion euros in Italy. The project, which strengthens the digital sovereignty of the country, includes the construction of new infrastructure in the Milan metropolitan area and the expansion of those already operating in Lombardy since 2020.
Thanks to art. 13 of Legislative Decree 104/2023, the plan will be managed by an Extraordinary Government Commissioner, charged with simplifying the necessary authorizations. The investment will create approximately 1.100 new jobs within five years, supporting key sectors such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and cloud services, and fostering national economic and technological development.
"This step consolidates Italy as a European hub of innovation. We are building the foundations of the digital and green revolution" he underlined Adolfo Urso, Minister of Business and Made in Italy.
Cyber rules are postponed for further investigation
Le cybersecurity regulations, initially foreseen in the draft decree, have been postponed to allow for “further technical investigations”. This has left key provisions for the protection of critical digital infrastructure and the fight against cybercrime pending.
Among the postponed measures are theExtension of the powers of the District Anti-Mafia Directorates (Dda) in the context of computer extortion, theintroduction of harsher penalties for intrusions into critical infrastructure related to national security and theExtension of investigation times on computer crimes.
No gag law for magistrates
Even before the Council of Ministers, the provision that would have imposed restrictions on the freedom of magistrates. The so-called “gag norm” It envisaged preventing judges and prosecutors from dealing with cases concerning issues on which they had already expressed public opinions, such as through interviews or participation in conferences. The initial draft of the decree also included the introduction of a disciplinary offence for judges who did not abstain from proceedings for “serious reasons of convenience”, extending the current rules that impose abstention only in cases required by law. The proposal was therefore shelved or perhaps just postponed.
