Budget: Messina says other businesses should also be taxed; there was an agreement with Meloni

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - According to banker Carlo Messina, in order to secure the funding for the forthcoming Budget Bill, the Government should ‘assess all companies with profits in excess of 500 million, through a transparent debate’. Messina was interviewed at the Coldiretti forum and pointed out that taxing banks alone could raise constitutional issues. “There are other companies that are never mentioned, with growth rates of 70 per cent and up to 200 per cent, whilst for banks this year we are looking at 5–10 per cent”. Messina then reiterates that last year a three-year agreement was signed with the Government by the credit institutions and that the banks had also proposed doing so on an annual basis. The senior executive at Intesa Sanpaolo adds that there is also a matter of liability, as bank directors: “We have shareholders; we cannot take on liability” for anything that is inconsistent with the agreements reached.

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