Pensions: a new fund is being set up to finance early retirement

Hence the speculation – confirmed by several sources – that the indexation mechanism will once again be adjusted, with the cuts becoming more severe as the pension amount rises. The model is the one used in 2023–24, when full revaluation was guaranteed only for pensions up to four times the minimum, whilst for higher amounts a sliding scale was introduced, falling rapidly from 85 per cent for pensions between four and five times the minimum down to 32 per cent for the highest brackets.

At the time, with inflation soaring due to the war in Ukraine, the measure provided for funding of 2.1 billion in 2023 and 4 billion annually over the following two years. Today, inflation is not at those levels, and even the target would be lower, falling within the 1.7 billion that the latest draft budget plan (Dpb) sent to Brussels lists under the heading ‘other expenditure’ to be reduced.

The percentage increases to be allocated to the various pension brackets are also currently being finalised, with a range of options depending on the overall structure of the budget. However, it is not difficult to appreciate the political sensitivity of such a measure, which would nevertheless safeguard the revaluation of the lowest pensions and could provide some additional support for those on the minimum pension.

The meeting – attended by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the Minister for the Economy Giancarlo Giorgetti, Deputy Prime Ministers Antonio Tajani and Matteo Salvini, and the leader of Noi Moderati, Maurizio Lupi – then turned its attention to the banking issue.

The package of measures designed to raise the 5 billion euros provided for in the budget programme submitted to Brussels has been finalised (see the accompanying article), but its final form will have to wait until a meeting between the Deputy Minister for the Economy, Maurizio Leo, and the Italian Banking Association (ABI), which could take place as early as today.

Under the plan drawn up at last night’s summit, there would be no provision for a further increase in the national health fund, which would therefore follow the path already set out in the public finance projections: next year, the figure would therefore rise to 151.67 billion, up from 148.84 billion in 2026. Still on the subject of healthcare, there is also scope for a possible increase in the spending ceiling on medical devices (from 0.20 to 0.40 per cent more) to cushion the impact of the payback scheme borne by companies in the biomedical sector.

Measures for families and the middle class were also at the heart of the debate. Among the proposals under consideration is the extension of the road tax exemption to all first-time car owners.

The other ongoing negotiation is taking place between Rome and Brussels. It aims to include a portion of current expenditure within the safeguard clause, to fund direct assistance towards the payment of utility bills for households in financial difficulty. A concession from the EU would make it possible to free up part of the 10.3 billion in funding allocated to the domestic section of the budget bill for other measures.