Dear Renzi, don't let your guard down on the reforms. It would be suicide. The approach of the administrative elections in the large Municipalities and of the referendum on the constitutional reform of the Senate must not only slow down the propulsive thrust of the Government on the field of reforms, but must rather push us to find a new thrust. With five priorities: the revolution in public spending, greater competition, the reform of union representation and bargaining, the reorganization of justice and the promotion of excellence in universities. This is the gist of a letter-appeal sent earlier this week to Prime Minister Matteo Renzi by 8 MPs from the Democratic Party, including Pietro Ichino, Irene Tinagli, Giampaolo Galli and the vice president of the Senate Linda Lanzillotta who explains its meaning in this interview with FIRSTonline.
FIRSTonline – Senator Lanzillotta, after the Renzi government's ride in 2015, the urgency of a restart and a boost in the politics of reforms has been felt for some time: the idea of a letter-appeal that you and seven other parliamentarians of the Democratic Party have mandate to the premier was born from here?
LANZILLOTTA - The letter-appeal to the premier was born out of the awareness that more than a restart of the reform policy, which under Renzi has never stopped, it is essential that Italy gets back on track: not because Europe is asking us to, but because it is essential for the modernization and development of the country and because it is on this that the markets judge us. Fortunately, we are not starting from scratch in this area, because 2015 was an extraordinary year and because Renzi succeeded where many had failed. Last year's budget speaks for itself: just think of the constitutional and electoral reforms but also of the Jobs Act, the reform of cooperative banks, the procurement code and all the other reforms that have been approved: however, now we cannot lower the guard and we must give new sprint to the reforms.
FIRSTonline – What was Renzi's response to your letter?
LANZILLOTTA - We will see soon from the facts. We don't expect pats on the cheeks but new pages in the government's agenda on the crucial area of reforms. Ours was a reminder and we are convinced that the premier will treasure it, because our initiative is aimed solely at animating a constructive debate on government action and at strengthening the extraordinary driving force that Renzi has expressed so far and which must continue with renewed vigor even in a year full of major political events such as 2016 with local elections in the large municipalities in the spring and the referendum on the constitutional reform in October.
FIRSTonline – Eight signatures to the letter-appeal to Renzi are however a bit few: does it mean that in the Democratic Party itself there are large pockets of resistance to the government's reform policy?
LANZILLOTTA - No, we didn't want to hunt for signatures and hold a referendum on the rate of reformism in the Democratic Party, but rather throw a stone in the pond in view of the next battles. This is why we started immediately, without many trumpet blasts, but there was no lack of appreciation in the parliamentary groups of the Democratic Party and I believe that all this will be better verified when we promote public discussions on the individual issues of our reform initiative, open not only to politicians but to the forces of culture and public opinion. But let me make one more clarification.
FIRSTonline – You're welcome.
LANZILLOTTA - Even if many of the signatures collected under the letter-appeal to the premier are from parliamentarians who met and who come from the Civic Choice, we don't even remotely have the idea of constituting a current of super-reformists within the Democratic Party, but only of doing a battle over the contents of the reforms that we consider priorities in 2016 and which must strengthen government action. If our initiative has repercussions on the Democratic Party, it will be to make people understand that there aren't so many hindrances in the largest Italian party, but there is a very large majority that is pushing for reforms.
FIRSTonline – Proposing to speed up reforms just a few months before local elections in big cities could be a generous gamble: doesn't it risk causing the Democratic Party to lose votes?
LANZILLOTTA - We think just the exact opposite. Not only because if the reforms put corporations and lobbies in crisis and exalt the general interests they can garner more support than what the clichés tell about the link between reforms and electoral results. But also because the next administrative elections will be played mainly on local issues and on the quality of the candidates and therefore there is no reason to slow down the reforms. On the contrary, the reforms enhance the novelty that Renzi has brought to Italian politics.
FIRSTonline – The public spending revolution to reduce debt and taxes is at the top of the five priority reforms you suggest to the Government: does this mean that you expect a relaunch of the spending review and that the decrees that will implement the reform of the PA are not enough?
LANZILLOTTA - We will evaluate the text of the decrees implementing the reform of the PA on the merits, but I hope that the Government will fully exploit the broad delegation it has received from Parliament and that it will also promote strong innovation in the public sector. On spending, however, we must understand each other and raise the bar of ambitions.
FIRSTonline – In what sense?
LANZILLOTTA - It is not a question of making a few more cuts here and there or even of resorting more to Consip, as it is also necessary, but of carrying out an action of profound reorganization of public administrations which has as its objectives a greater efficiency of services for citizens , eliminating pockets of surpluses and annuities from positions, but also a process of retraining or outplacement of employees who only have to gain from the reform and a new industrial plan of the PA.
FIRSTonline – What exactly are you proposing when you call for a quantum leap in competition policy?
LANZILLOTTA - Let's think first of all of the digital single market and the intertwining of telecommunications networks and online content which can offer great opportunities to our country but which must be regulated in order to avoid new monopolies and to develop competition and transparency. But many steps forward will also have to be made in mobility networks, energy, insurance and medicines: the imminent discussion in the Senate of the law on competition is an opportunity not to be missed.
FIRSTonline – A crucial point of your initiative is also the one that urges the Government to reform trade union representation and the bargaining structure with an eye to labor productivity: it means that you do not consider the recent CGIL, CISL and UIL platform adequate and that you do not trust in the confrontation between the social partners?
LANZILLOTTA - Ours is a push to do. We cannot wait years to redefine trade union representation and to change the structure of contracts, favoring the company dimension that can best reward productivity and distribute its benefits more equally. The Jobs Act has shown that great changes can be made even in the minefield of the labor market and it is right to continue rapidly on this path.
FIRSTonline – The letter-appeal you sent to Renzi also calls for priority attention to the reorganization of the judiciary and the University but it avoids politically sensitive and highly topical issues such as civil unions and banks: why?
LANZILLOTTA - It was useless to intervene on civil unions, both because there is already a strong commitment from the prime minister and because we have focused on economic and social reforms. From this point of view, banks are certainly a priority issue, but before proposing a new law, I think we need to wait for the results of the parliamentary commission which is looming on the horizon on the 4 banks in crisis and on the last 15 years of the banking system, but which it is also necessary, in conjunction with European guidelines, to redefine a new banking model on which there is still much to dig into and reflect on.
