FROM EIR DAILY ALERT

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Conflict Between Italy and the EU Commission Escalates

Oct. 23, 2018 (EIRNS)—The Italian Finance Minister has replied to the EU Commission with a letter yesterday, stating that Italy won’t change its budget proposal.

“We are aware of having chosen a budget policy approach not in line with the rules of the Stability and Growth Pact. It was a difficult decision but a necessary one, in view of the persistent delay in recovering pre-crisis growth levels and of the dramatic conditions of the most disadvantaged layers of society,”

says the letter signed by Minister Giovanni Tria and approved by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

The Commission is replied immediately and issued an ultimatum: Italy has three weeks’ time to rewrite the budget proposal, before the EU Commission asks the EU Council to open violation proceedings. The procedure will take months and at the end of the road, in the worst case, Italy will be demanded to pay a fine between 0.2% and 0.5% of GDP—which Italy will or will not pay.

If the confrontation escalates, the Lega and the M5S will use it to increase their voters support for the April elections of the European Parliament.