In the Senate Chamber the debate on trust in the Draghi government
.
The first to speak was Alessandra Gallone of Fi who thanked the premier for having "injected the vaccine of the future into the Italians" and for "having spoken with his head and heart".
Among various sanitizations, the huge space given to the general discussion, the reply scheduled for 21 and subsequent explanations of vote, the Draghi government "of emergency" and born "in a republican spirit"
will have the confidence of the Senate only after 11 pm
.
"The first thought I would like to share concerns our
national
responsibility
, the main duty to which we are all called, myself first".
This is one of the first passages of
Prime Minister
Mario Draghi
's
speech
to the Senate
in which he invites the political forces to
unity
and reiterates how it is "our duty" now "to
fight the pandemic by all means and safeguard the lives of citizens
: a trench where we all fight together,
the virus is everyone's enemy "he
declares.
See
PHOTOS from the Senate
This, in a nutshell,
the premier's speech which lasted 53 minutes
and received 21 applause.
THE VIRUS AND THE ECONOMIC CRISIS
- Draghi addresses first of all to "those who suffer from the
economic crisis"
triggered by the pandemic.
"We are committed to doing everything so that they can return, in the shortest possible time, in the recognition of their rights, to the normality of their occupations", he assures.
"
We are committed to informing citizens sufficiently in advance, as far as compatible with the rapid evolution of the pandemic, of any changes in the rules
", he observes.
"An executive like the one I have the honor of presiding over, especially in a dramatic situation like the one we are experiencing, is simply the government of the country. It does not need any adjective to define it. It sums up the will, the awareness, the
meaning. of responsibility of the political forces
that support him who have been asked to renounce for the good of all ".
"This is the
republican spirit
of a government that is born in an emergency situation, following the high indication of the head of state", underlines the premier.
"The growth of a country's economy does not arise only from economic factors. It depends on the institutions, on the
trust
of citizens in them, on the sharing of values and hopes. The same factors determine the progress of a country".
Draghi speaks of a "
new and completely unusual perimeter of collaboration" between the political forces and
thanks his predecessor Giuseppe Conte
for the work done.
The pandemic "has so far affected mainly
young people and women
, a selective unemployment but which could soon begin to affect workers with permanent contracts as well".
THE NEW RECONSTRUCTION
- "Today we have, as happened to governments immediately after the war, the possibility or rather the responsibility, to start a New Reconstruction" through "mutual trust, in national brotherhood, in the pursuit of civic and moral redemption", urges Draghi.
"Political forces that are ideologically distant, if not opposed, collaborated in that reconstruction. I am sure that even in this new reconstruction no one will fail to make a contribution in the distinction of roles and identities".
FOREIGN POLICY
- "This government was born in the wake of our country's belonging, as a founding member, to the
European Union
and as a protagonist of the
Atlantic Alliance
".
"Supporting this government means sharing the
irreversibility of the choice of the euro"
and the "prospect of an increasingly integrated European Union that will arrive at a common public budget capable of supporting countries in periods of recession. Nation states remain the reference. of our citizens, but in the areas defined by their weakness they surrender national sovereignty to acquire shared sovereignty ".
"
This government will be convinced pro-European and Atlanticist
, in line with Italy's historical anchors: the EU, the Atlantic Alliance, the United Nations".
Draghi therefore aims to
strengthen the strategic and essential relationship with France and Germany
and to
intensify collaboration with the
"
new US Administration"
.
"Italy will endeavor to fuel dialogue mechanisms with the
Russian Federation",
while declaring that it is following
"
with concern what is happening" in Russia and "in other countries where citizens' rights are often violated", "also the rising tensions in Asia around
China
".
Government, Draghi: "Unity is not an option"
NATIONAL PRIDE
AND UNITY
- "
We are even more Italian
in
our
belief in the destiny of Europe
".
We must be "
proud of the Italian contribution to the growth and development of the European Union. Without Italy there is no Europe
. But outside Europe there is less Italy. There is no sovereignty in solitude".
"
We must be more proud, fairer and more generous towards our country
. And recognize the many firsts, the profound wealth of our social capital, of our volunteering, which others envy us".
Draghi therefore asks for "the convinced support of Parliament".
A support "that does not rest on political alchemy but on the spirit of sacrifice, on the vibrant desire to be reborn, to come back stronger and on the enthusiasm of young people who want a country capable of realizing their dreams. Today,
unity is not a option, but a duty
. A duty guided by what I am sure unites us all:
love for Italy
".
THE SCHOOL
- Covid "caused deep wounds" also on the "cultural and educational" level.
The girls and boys have had school service through
Distance Learning
which, "while ensuring the continuity of the service, cannot fail to create inconvenience and highlight inequalities".
We must "
quickly return to normal school hours"
, and we must "make up for the hours of face-to-face teaching lost last year, especially in the southern regions where distance teaching has encountered greater difficulties".
But "the
return to school must take place safely
".
"It is necessary to invest in the training of teaching staff to align the educational offer to the demand of the new generations" and "
particular attention must be paid to ITIS (technical institutes)"
.
"Without innovating the current organization of these schools we risk wasting the resources" allocated to them.
VACCINES
- For the "
vaccination plan"
"all energies"
must be mobilized
from civil protection to the armed forces and volunteers.
And vaccinations must be done "in all available facilities, public and private".
The "first challenge" is to obtain sufficient doses, and then "
distribute" the vaccine "quickly and efficiently
".
"Our duty is to fight the pandemic by all means and safeguard the lives of citizens: a trench where we all fight together, the virus is everyone's enemy".
THE ENVIRONMENT
- "
Global warming
has direct effects on our lives and on health, from pollution, to hydrogeological fragility, to the raising of the sea level that could make large areas of some coastal cities no longer habitable".
Protecting the future of the environment, reconciling it with progress and social well-being, requires a
new approach
: digitalization, agriculture, health, energy, aerospace, cloud computing, schools and education, territorial protection, biodiversity, global warming and the greenhouse effect, they are different faces of a multifaceted challenge that sees at the center the ecosystem in which all human actions will develop ".
THE WORK
- "Getting out of the pandemic will not be like turning the light back on".
"The government will have to protect all workers, but it would be a mistake to protect all economic activities indifferently
.
Some will have to change, even radically
. And the choice of which activities to protect and which to accompany in the change is the difficult task that economic policy will have to face in the coming months ".
"
Active labor policies are central
. In order for them to be immediately operational, it is necessary to improve the existing tools, such as the reallocation allowance, by strengthening the training policies of employed and unemployed workers.
The staffing and digital equipment of the centers
must also be
strengthened
.
for use
in agreement with the regions. This project is already part of the National Recovery and Resilience Program but will be anticipated immediately ".
"The economic policy response to climate change and the pandemic will have to be a combination of structural policies that facilitate innovation,
financial policies that facilitate the access of businesses capable of growing to capital and credit and expansionary monetary and fiscal policies.
that facilitate investments and create demand for the new sustainable activities that have been created ".
WOMEN
- One of the most applauded of the intervention steps, mainly by senators, relates to women: "Italy is today one of the worst
wage gap
between genders in Europe, as well as a
chronic lack of women in senior management positions
.
A real gender equality does not mean a pharisaic respect for women's quotas
required by law: it requires
equal competitive conditions to
be
guaranteed between genders
. We intend to work in this sense,
aiming at a rebalancing of the wage gap
and a welfare system that allows women to devote the same energies as their male colleagues to their careers, overcoming the choice between family or work ".
TOURISM
- "Some growth models will have to change" such as tourism, "an activity that before the pandemic represented 14% of our total economic activities. Businesses and workers in that sector must be helped to emerge from the disaster created by the pandemic. But without forget that
our tourism will have a future if we do not forget that it thrives on our ability to preserve cities of art, places and traditions
".
INFRASTRUCTURE
- "It is necessary to
invest in the technical, legal and economic preparation of public officials
to allow administrations to be able to plan, design and accelerate investments with certainty of times, costs and in full compatibility with the sustainability and growth guidelines indicated in the National Recovery and Resilience ".
"
The private sector must be invited to participate in the realization of public investments by
bringing more than finance, competence, efficiency and innovation".
RECOVERY FUND
- "The strategy for Next Generation EU projects can only be transversal and synergistic" with the "ability to impact multiple sectors simultaneously, in a coordinated manner. We will have to learn to prevent rather than repair" not only by deploying all technologies at our disposal but also investing in the awareness of the new generations that "every action has a consequence".
The "share of additional loans that we will request through the main component of the program, the Instrument for Recovery and Resilience, will have to be modulated according to public finance objectives".
"There are also specific instruments" for the South "such as the tax credit and other interventions to be agreed at the European level".
"To be able to spend well, using the investments dedicated by the Next Generation EU, it is necessary to
strengthen the southern administrations
".
"The
governance
of the Recovery and Resilience Program is based on the Ministry of Economy and Finance
with the very close collaboration of the competent Ministries that define the sector's policies and projects. Parliament will be constantly informed both on the overall system and on sector policies ".
"
The previous government has already done a great deal of work
on the Recovery and Resilience Program. We need to
deepen and complete that work
which, including the necessary discussions with the European Commission, would have a very short deadline, the end of April".
"
The missions of the program may be remodeled and re-merged, but those stated in the previous documents of the outgoing government will remain
".
FISCO
- "It is not a good idea to change taxes one at a time. Comprehensive action also makes it more difficult for specific pressure groups to push the government to take written measures to benefit them."
"A
profound revision
of the personal income tax
should be studied
with the dual objective of simplifying and rationalizing the tax structure, gradually reducing the tax burden and preserving progressivity. A renewed and strengthened commitment to the action of fight against tax evasion ".
"
Tax reforms should be entrusted to experts
, who know well what can happen if a tax is changed."
JUSTICE
- The EU Commission "urges us to increase the efficiency of the civil judicial system, implementing and promoting the application of the reform decrees on insolvency, ensuring a more efficient functioning of the courts, favoring the elimination of the backlog and a better management of workloads, adopting simpler procedural rules, filling vacancies for administrative staff, reducing the differences that exist in the management of cases from court to court and finally promoting the repression of corruption ".
THE REFORM OF THE PA
- "The other reform that cannot be postponed is that of the PA" which "will have to move on two directives: investments in connectivity with the creation of efficient platforms that are easy to use by citizens; continuous updating of skills of public employees by selecting the best skills and attitudes quickly, efficiently and safely, without forcing thousands of candidates to wait. "
MIGRANTS
- "Another challenge will be the negotiation on the new Pact for migration and asylum, in which we will pursue a decisive strengthening of the balance between the responsibility of the countries of first entry and effective solidarity. The
construction of a European policy of repatriation
of those not entitled to international protection, alongside
full respect for the rights of refugees
".
QUOTES
- Draghi, after reiterating the republican spirit of the new government, quotes
Cavour
and the
Pope
.
"The Government will make the reforms but it will also face the emergency. There is no before and after, we are aware of Cavour's teaching: 'The reforms completed in time, instead of weakening authority, strengthen it'".
As for Francis, the premier observes: "As Pope Francis said 'Natural tragedies are the earth's answer to our mistreatment. And I think that if I asked the Lord what he thinks, I don't think he would tell me that it is a good thing: we have been us to spoil the work of the Lord. "
LIVE FROM THE CLASSROOM
His speech will not be long - about twenty minutes - and will largely focus on the country's emergencies and priorities.
The
Covid
, first.
But also the
Recovery Plan
with its strong environmental footprint and the three major reforms to be implemented: that of the tax authorities, the digital one, that of civil justice.
The premier passes the eve of his speech at Palazzo Chigi.
In the morning he sees the Minister of Infrastructure Enrico Giovannini and, in the meantime, props up his team to the presidency of the Council.
With
Paola Ansuini
, until yesterday at the top of the communication of Bankitalia, who, in the next few hours, will be appointed director of communication and media relations of Palazzo Chigi to direct an office that will have a team that will work on several levels.
In his speech Draghi will emphasize Covid.
And, faced with the arrival of the variants in Italy, the line that the Prime Minister could take is that of maximum prudence.
Draghi will dedicate a large parenthesis to
foreign policy
.
Atlantism, a multilateral approach to international dossiers, Europeanism will be some of the pillars to which Draghi should refer in his speech.
After all, Friday, for the Prime Minister, will be the day of his debut in foreign policy with the extraordinary G7 convened in a videocall by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
And its international prestige should also be Italy's "weapon" to demand the implementation of a strong acceleration in the distribution of vaccines in Europe.
Also because Draghi's first opponent is the same as his predecessor: Covid.
And he is an opponent against whom, according to the thesis of the head of government, unity and cohesion not only of the country but also of politics are necessary.
It is probable that the prime minister also refers to the issue of
work
- with the end of the redundancy block which, at the moment, is scheduled for March 31 - and finally, the environmental issue will be central, on which Draghi has defined the Ministry for Ecological Transition, which will also chair the Interministerial Committee for Recovery.
From Friday, then, the Draghi presidency will come alive.
And, first of all, the government team needs to be completed.
According to qualified sources of the Executive, the premier could define the appointments of the undersecretaries also at the beginning of next week.
But acceleration is not excluded already during the weekend.
On the
team
- the parties are convinced - Draghi's stakes will be less rigid than the appointment of ministers.
Political forces should send short lists to Palazzo Chigi and could have some room for action even in the proxies.
The race for "sub-government" has already begun, with the expectations of the parties.
According to the latest rumors at the Mef, Laura Castelli and Antonio Misiani could be confirmed, with the entry of the Northern League player Bitonci and the blue Pichetto Fratin.
Foreigners aim at a Lega and Fi role while in the M5S there is dancing between Di Stefano's reconfirmation and the entry of Marta Grande.
Lega and FI (with Francesco Paolo Sisto) also look to Justice, where Vito Crimi could arrive for the M5S.
For the Ecological Transition the name of the pentastellato Buffagni circulates while in Health there could be some confirmation (such as that of Pier Paolo Sileri) and some new faces, such as that of the Northern League player Gian Marco Centinaio.
The return of the Salvinian Nicola Molteni and the confirmation of Carlo Sibilia are possible at the Viminale.
At MIT the Sicilian Giancarlo Cancelleri (M5S) aims for reconfirmation while in the Democratic Party there is the pink quota factor that pushes the reconfirmation of women and some entries: among the new entries circulate the names of Madia, Pinotti or Gribaudo.
In Iv, on the other hand, the quotations of Davide Faraone grow while the name of Francesco Scoma circulates for Agricultural Policies.
And also in FI the race is tight.
Among the most popular were senators Battistoni and Malan, Mandelli, and deputies Calabria and Baldelli.
The
Democratic Party
is there, and will support the Draghi government with commitment and loyalty, which represents a great bet, whose strength and success will be measured on results.
Long speech by the secretary of the Democratic Party
Nicola Zingaretti
on 'La Repubblica', in which he draws the line for the coming months.
Now an essential program, to stop the pandemic and create jobs, while spending European resources well.
Issues on which generosity and loyalty on the part of all political forces are needed.
In the knowledge, notes the dem leader, that the party remains for the future clearly alternative to the League.
And a parliamentary confrontation, to work on institutional and electoral reforms.