In the words of Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, the Italian government is considering tax cuts worth billions in the next year’s budget.
Two or three of the measures would benefit families, said the leader of the right-wing populist Lega of the daily Il Sole 24 Ore (Thursday edition). „The whole package covers around ten billion euros, including measures for companies,“ says Salvini.
Salvini and his coalition partner Luigi Di Maio of the populist Five-Star Movement argue that tax cuts would boost the economy.
Italy must submit its draft budget for 2020 to the European Commission by mid-October. The Commission, which has recently abandoned sanctions on Italy for its deficit, wants pledges that the budget will not violate EU fiscal rules.
But both parties have promised their electorate tax cuts and higher social spending to boost the economy, which has been weakening for years. Italy’s debt is the second highest in the Eurozone, which also alarms the financial markets.
