Dl Infrastrutture, examination begins in the Chamber. But the remarks of the Study Service arrive

It has not yet reached Parliament and is already under scrutiny, with more than one underlining, the Infrastrutture dl approved in the Cdm on 19 May and published in the Gazzetta two days later. Examination of the measure is set for Tuesday 3 June with the first round of hearings in the Environment and Transport Committees of the Chamber of Deputies, which will first hear from CGIL, CISL and UIL, as well as Legacoop, Confcooperative, CNA, Confartigianato and Confcommercio.

After the Quirinale's impetus, which had asked for the removal of a paragraph and a letter on anti-mafia controls for the Ponte sullo Stretto bridge tenders, another relief is now being formulated by the Study Service of Montecitorio in the documentation dossier on the measure published in these hours. The Chamber's technicians write: "The measure, composed of 17 articles for a total of 26 paragraphs, appears to be referable, also on the basis of the preamble, to 7 distinct purposes" with the list of as many points. 'These distinct purposes appear to be supported by the unitary and transversal ratio of intervening in the infrastructure and transport sector', argues file no. 125. "On this point, it is recalled that the Constitutional Court, in judgment no. 247 of 2019, raised perplexities on the recourse to the "financial matter" as a unitary ratio to which the provisions of a decree-law should be referred since it is "filled with the most varied defining contents"; moreover, in this regard, what the Constitutional Court stated in judgment no. 245 of 2022, namely that "the mere evocation of the tax matter in the epigraph and/or preamble could [...] become the instrument for thwarting the constitutional limits to the amendability of the decree-law"; such arguments could also be applicable to the unitary ratio of the decree-law under examination identified above". According to the technicians of Montecitorio, therefore, the unitary hold of the measure would appear weak, since the mere fact that the single articles belong to the same economic sector, that of transport and infrastructures, would not be sufficient.

The dossier of the Study Service also dwells on a provision inviting to evaluate "the opportunity to further investigate the traceability to this ratio of Article 15, paragraph 2, which contains an expenditure authorisation in favour of the National Sport Federation-ACI in consideration of the specific importance of the two Formula 1 Grand Prix organised in Italy". But there is also one for the nature of the decree-laws since 'with reference to the requirement of the immediate application of the measures provided for by the decree-laws, referred to in Article 15, paragraph 3 of Law no. 400 of 1988, it should be noted that out of 26 paragraphs, 5 require the adoption of implementing measures; in particular, the adoption of 1 regulation, 2 ministerial decrees, 2 measures of another nature is provided for'.

It will now be up to the deputies to evaluate the decree also in its contents. Starting with the regulations on the Ponte sullo Stretto bridge, which caused so much discussion in the days of its approval in the Cdm. After the deletion of the anti-mafia rules entrusted to the Prevention Structure set up at the Viminale and already in charge of overseeing the Milan-Cortina Olympic Games, the contracts in the seismic crater in central Italy and the construction of a number of hospitals in Calabria, which are also contiguous to the bridge in terms of territory, Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister Salvini announced that the League will present an amendment during the parliamentary conversion to re-propose the rule on special controls. The plan will, however, have to be agreed with Palazzo Chigi to avoid institutional friction on such a delicate matter that is very dear, as is well known, to the Colle.

Among the other hot spots of the measure, passed over in silence but instead central to economic policy, is the motorway issue. On this front, the government is accelerating towards new tenders for expiring concessions. The measure 'introduces a transitional regime to allow the MIT to immediately start the new procedures for entrusting expired or expiring concessions, giving new impetus to investments on the motorway network without significant toll increases'. In particular, Article 11 provides for a transitional period until 31 December 2026 that allows the inclusion of extraordinary maintenance works in concession tenders before the completion of the procedure for the adoption of the Economic and Financial Plan. The works will then be included in the EFP once it has been approved. The text also envisages a strengthening of toll construction mechanisms, eliminating the case-by-case screening by the Transport Regulatory Authority and introducing the single model currently being consulted by the authority headed by Nicola Zaccheo.