Fuel: excise duty cut extended until 17 September. Meloni: targeted support to follow

The fifteenth extension of the excise duty cut, which the Government approved during a lightning-fast Cabinet meeting lasting just 10 minutes, will last for seven days. This measure also includes the extension of the tax credit for road haulage companies into September.

The cost of the measure is 102 million, which is covered by budgetary funds. The scheme is therefore taking shape as a shorter version than the fifteen days originally envisaged. In any case, it remains clear that the new measure is intended to give the Government the time it needs to finalise the ‘targeted aid’ scheme, which is due to be announced next week, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced on social media.

For this new phase, political agreement still needs to be reached on defining the group of beneficiaries, which is an essential prerequisite for determining the financial commitment and the allocation of funds. The fact remains, however, that – at least in the options drawn up so far – any bonus would cover the final three months of the year, starting on 1 October. This would therefore leave a gap of around fifteen days at present between the expiry of the new extension and the introduction of the subsequent measures. It is easy to foresee that, in a few days’ time, the issue will once again come to the fore.