• Phase 3. Maneuver rises to 25 billion, Cig with stakes and funds at school

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23 July 2020 The encirclement to Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte for the management of European resources is now "official". The pressing of the parties, from the Democratic Party to the FI, is growing hour by hour and seems to converge on the need to establish a bicameral Commission for the Recovery Fund. On the bottom, among other things, the rift that could be registered in Parliament sees a plastic anticipation in Strasbourg, on the occasion of the vote on an amendment on the use of the Mes fund: the M5S votes "no", together with Lega and Fdi. Pd, Iv and FI vote in favor. 

In these hours, in reality, Conte is moving on a double track. That of the Recovery Plan, which will be presented only after the summer break. And that of the August decree which provides for a difference of 25 billion, on which the House and Senate will express their opinion on 29 July. Just at Palazzo Madama, the absolute majority necessary for the yes to the new extra-deficit is far from obvious. In parliamentary corridors, in reality, it does not draw the air of a turnaround but the numbers are tight. Pd, M5S, Leu and Iv need the help of a part of the members of the Misto and lifetime senators. And it doesn't have to be enough. For this, "silently", the government is also seeking the placet of FI, the "dialoguing" opposition repeatedly mentioned by Conte. But the blues, for now, raise the ante. "Our relief is not a foregone conclusion, guarantees are needed on how and where the further debt will be spent", underlines the group leader at Palazzo Madama Anna Maria Bernini. Even further the yes of Lega and Fdi. "Either black and white proposals or we will not vote for the deviation", warns the leader of Fdi Giorgia Meloni. "We will vote for it only if our proposals are accepted", Matteo Salvini raises the bar. 

But in the aftermath of the Italian success in Brussels, the whole parliamentary sphere is boiling a little. The task force announced by Conte continues not to convince the allies. In fact, the issue has not yet been officially put on the government table while the Pd group, today, is attacking by presenting a motion in the Senate for the establishment of a Bicameral Commission on Recovery, a position on which Dem, Renziani and Fi are fully aligned. The proposal, in the M5S, is accepted in silence. "The hypothesis is that the task force will deal with the Recovery Plan, with the involvement and vote of Parliament," explains a pentastellato government source. But the pressing of the groups is expected to grow, with unknown effects on government stability. 

The 5 Star Movement, with the passing of the hours, seems to compact on the anti-Mes trench. Yet, today it is the Minister of Health Roberto Speranza to bring up the opportunity of the yes to the fund. "At least 20 billion are needed for health. The Mes or any other tool is also fine, the important thing is to have resources," explains the head of the LEU delegation. To answer him, albeit indirectly, is the Undersecretary of the Presidency of the Council Mario Turco. "We have resources already allocated to Healthcare, and we need to spend them. Further indebtedness is unnecessary", underlines the caution of Palazzo Chigi on the activation of the fund. But on the Mes, now, it seems that Conte is called to decide before the summer break, to avoid that split Pd-M5S that already the European Parliament has registered today.