“I respect the independence of the ECB, but it should help Europe to give a message of something new. Even though I know it's not easy. The time of austerity is over”. This is the message launched today by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in front of the audience in Davos, where the World Economic Forum is underway. “The European direction is not correct from an economic point of view – continued the Prime Minister -. At the G20 in Australia every continent, every country spoke of the need to invest in growth, except the Eurozone, which spoke only of austerity. It is important to keep the focus on the budget but also on growth: the time has come for growth, through public and private investments. We need to transform risks into opportunities: this is the challenge of leadership".
“ITALY AND EUROPE: CARPE DIEM”
In general, according to the head of the Italian government, “in Italy today there is a window of exceptional opportunities and the role of politicians is to seize the moment, 'carpe diem', as the Latins used to say, when we can choose the future. Even in Europe there are many risks such as terrorism and lack of sustainability, but I believe that if the leaders are finally able to invest in the future as an opportunity, we can go back to giving a positive message”. Renzi then reiterated that “if Europe is just bureaucracy, it's the end: we have 12 important months ahead of us for growth. The real spread is not the one between government bonds and German Bunds but the one between the dreams and expectations of citizens and the concrete results of European leaders”.
“BERLUSCONI, MONTI AND LETTA WERE WRONG NOT TO REFORM THE BANKING SYSTEM”
As for our country, “unfortunately we lost the opportunity to reform the banking system three years ago – said the Premier again in an interview with CNBC on the sidelines of the WEF -. When the crisis showed the first signs, many countries (Germany, Great Britain, Spain) decided to change the system. But Berlusconi not, Monti not, Letta not. I respect this decision but in a good system the first intervention concerns the banking system, as in Renaissance Florence: the banks are absolutely central. But Italy hasn't bailed out the banks, it hasn't created opportunities for them, it hasn't brought money to the banks. And it was the only country in Europe", insisted Renzi, who reaffirmed the measures launched yesterday by the CDM on cooperative banks: "Our system is solid, but in any case we have decided to intervene on cooperative banks with a very radical change" .
"KEY STRUCTURAL REFORMS: CREDIBILITY IS NEEDED"
In any case, to “believe in a new Renaissance”, banks are not enough: “We need a different idea of Europe, which however will only be possible after Italy has implemented structural reforms – concluded Renzi -. If we wait for our European friends to give us solutions, our problems will remain serious. And for this reason we are very happy with the work on the reforms. Perhaps the most important structural reform is the credibility reform”.
