Defence, Giorgetti puts the brakes on: ambitious and not compatible with the 2% GDP demanded by Nato. And he raises the GDP: 'It can be revised upwards'.

On the defence front, 'despite the large appropriations allocated, the NATO target of 2% of GDP is very ambitious and not entirely compatible in terms of coverage with the current framework of European governance. In fact, in light of the appropriations provided for in the draft budget law, we will arrive at 1.57% in 2025, 1.58% in 2026 and 1.61% in 2027'. So said Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti in a hearing on the manoeuvre at the Budget Committees of the House and Senate. In the European sphere things seem to be moving. "I am in favour of the Italian proposal not to consider the expenditure on defence in the stability pact, it is very rational," said Andrius Kubilius, Commissioner-designate for Defence, during his hearing at the Euro Chamber answering a question from Fratelli d'Italia MEP Elena Donazzan. 'Maybe we can do something similar to what was done during Covid'.

In light of the latest data, 'I would not be surprised by an upward revision of the preliminary GDP estimates for 2024,' the economy minister said. The GDP, he explained, should return to expansion at the end of the year, thanks to 'still encouraging' short-term prospects. "Looking back, over the past few years the Italian economic system has shown resilience beyond the forecasts of many. Istat's initial GDP growth estimates were subsequently revised upwards to an unprecedented extent. Also in the light of the significant increase in employment recorded so far, I would not be surprised by any upward revisions even with regard to the preliminary GDP estimates for 2024,' Giorgetti explained. In fact, 'the short-term growth prospects are, on the whole, still encouraging,' he added.

The manoeuvre, according to Giorgetti, allocates additional resources for the financing of the National Health Service in addition to those already allocated by current legislation. For the Minister of the Economy, "overall, the level of funding of the National Health Service will rise from EUR 136.5 billion in 2025 to EUR 141.3 billion in 2027, with an average annual increase over the 2025-2027 period above the growth rate programmed for net primary expenditure in the medium-term budget structural plan," he added. "As a result of the additional allocations provided by the manoeuvre, in the coming years, the financing of healthcare spending will also take on a trend roughly equal to that of inflation measured in terms of the HICP (Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices for the countries of the European Union), which according to the programmatic estimates of the Medium-Term Budget Structural Plan will be around 1.9 per cent over the 2025-2027 period."

"The first thing this government has done, it has put resources for lower middle-income families, someone can argue that this is right or wrong, it is surprising that this is being challenged by the very unions and forces that should be defending employees. We put it on employees, with the aim in some way to help growth by boosting demand and consumption,' the Minister of the Economy made it clear.

The increase from 26% to 42% in the taxation on cryptocurrency exchanges 'responds to the logic of rewarding patient and long-term investment characteristics'. This was said by Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti in a hearing before the Budget Committees of the House and Senate. Moreover, the extension of the web tax to small companies as well, 'eliminates the discriminatory feature at the basis of the US objection that had led to trade retaliation at the time of its introduction'.