Patuelli: Deficit? The banks have already done their bit. Salvini: It’s surreal to be dependent on zero point

The Istat figure confirming Italy’s deficit-to-GDP ratio at 3.1 per cent – meaning that the country’s exit from the infringement procedure will be postponed until 2027 – has prompted the first reactions from the political sphere, starting with the leader of the Lega, Matteo Salvini, and others. For example, a comment has immediately been made by the president of the Italian Banking Association (ABI), Antonio Patuelli, who rejects any temptation to call on the banks to make extraordinary contributions to help meet the budgetary requirements. “We are in favour of honouring our commitments and we are not prepared to break them,” says Patuelli. “European figures do not depend on the banks; the banks have done everything possible to support the economy.”

For his part, Matteo Salvini – one of the first politicians to comment – did not miss the opportunity to take a swipe at the strictness of European rules. Speaking via video link during the presentation of the Transport Regulatory Authority’s report to Parliament, Salvini described it as ‘surreal’ that in 2026 ‘Europe’s second-largest industrial power and the world’s fifth-largest exporter should have to rely on “zero point” mechanisms and logic to determine whether or not it can invest in its future. ‘This 0.1 will not influence or limit our desire to invest, innovate and ensure safety.’ Later, from Berlin, where he was visiting the FS stand at the Innotrans trade fair, he added: “With two wars underway, we need a strong and bold budget law – not a ‘zero’ one.”

PD: a setback for Meloni

“The confirmation that the 2025 deficit will stand at 3.1 per cent is bad news for Italy and a setback for Meloni and Giorgetti,” says Antonio Misiani, head of Economics, Finance, Business and Infrastructure at the PD’s national secretariat. “In recent years, they have staked everything on fiscal stability, pushing the tax burden to its highest level since 2014 and cutting many public services, starting with healthcare. However, this austerity policy has stifled growth, which in 2025 ranked third from the bottom in Europe despite the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). Now the government must avoid a budget full of handouts and petty benefits; what we need is a genuine strategy for growth, because Italia has ground to a halt and if the economy does not pick up again, public finances risk deteriorating once more.”

The opposition, on the other hand, highlights the government’s responsibilities. “The ISTAT figures,” says M5S leader Giuseppe Conte on Facebook, “worries me deeply: they confirm that four years of cuts and austerity, zero growth, record levels of taxation, a race to rearm and disastrous agreements signed by the Government are leaving Italy trapped and preventing us from exiting the infringement procedure, whilst we remain exposed to economic crises caused by wars on which the Prime Minister, in some cases, places ‘bets’ and, in others, ‘neither condemns nor endorses’.” “We must act quickly,” he adds, “the rearmament programmes and the drastic increase in military spending must be reviewed and cut immediately in order to free up resources.”