The speculative crisis that is hitting the euro, not just Italy, is pushing the Government to reflect on new measures to achieve a balanced budget by 2014. And this despite the fact that the financial package is "effective and credible". So in one Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who decided to break the silence of the last two days to launch an appeal to the majority and the opposition, admitting at the same time that the text of the budget could be supplemented by new measures. Meanwhile at the Treasury, Minister Tremonti has summoned the representatives of the majority to take stock of the maneuver. He will later meet the opposition in the Senate, pending the deadline for the presentation of the amendments, set for 18pm.
“For us, for Italy, it is certainly not an easy moment – writes the Prime Minister -. The interventions under discussion in Parliament accelerate the reduction of the debt. Already this year we will bring the primary balance into significant surplus. The crisis pushes us to accelerate the correction process in a very short time, to strengthen its contents, to fully define the further measures aimed at achieving a balanced budget in 2014".
For Berlusconi “the crisis of confidence that has hit the financial markets in recent days also affects Italy, but the threat concerns everyone, it concerns the common currency, the most concrete sign of European unity. European authorities and national governments are working hard to avert the danger of a setback that would take us back twenty years. We are at the forefront of this battle."
Our banks are “solid and sheltered from the blows that large foreign banking institutions have had to suffer and have been ready to respond to calls to further increase their capitalization. Our economy is vital. It can count on the innovative capacity of our entrepreneurs, the industriousness of our workers, the sense of responsibility of the social partners".
As for the stability of the Executive, while the opposition is asking for his resignation after the go-ahead for the maneuver, Berlusconi reiterates that the majority is "stable and strong, cohesive and determined". Finally, in line with the invitation received yesterday from the head of state, Berlusconi is asking the entire Parliament to be united in overcoming this moment: "We must be cohesive in the common interest, aware that short-term efforts and sacrifices will correspond to gains permanent and secure. This must be our fundamental resource today”.
The complete note from Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi
