Giorgetti wants EU flexibility for energy-hit families and warns against refusal

Flexibility for families

Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told a parliamentary hearing on the government's economic blueprint on Monday, 12 October, that Rome would like to use the NEC, the EU flexibility mechanism, to address the needs of families hit by the energy shock. The hearing covered the Economic and Financial Planning Document (DPFP), and AGI reports that the government wants NEC funds for household energy costs, not only for investment. Giorgetti said that if Europe refused, leaving families to bear the burden, that would be the wrong choice. He added that the aim was to do something for families not because the government insisted on it, but because parliament was asking for it.

Parliament was expected to vote the same day on a request for a budget deviation to fund energy and defence spending in 2027 and 2028. The amount is reported differently: Corriere della Sera gives 28.8 billion euros, while AGI gives 29 billion. AGI adds that banks and credit institutions could also contribute to the financing.

Giorgetti stressed that the outcome was still open:

I don't know the outcome; negotiations with EU Commission officials are currently underway.

Budget room under scrutiny

The hearings with the Bank of Italy, the Court of Audit, Istat and the Parliamentary Budget Office (UPB) returned a sober picture. Istat recorded that actual wages fell 9.4% between the first quarter of 2021 and the second quarter of 2026. The Bank of Italy said the margin on the deficit is narrow and deviations should be avoided, while the UPB warned that limited deviations late in the year could compromise the exit from the excessive deficit procedure. According to Corriere della Sera, the bodies heard agreed that beyond the extra spending the EU allows for defence and energy, the DPFP leaves no room to finance other measures in deficit, so they will have to be covered with more revenue and or spending cuts. The government still aims to exit the EU excessive deficit procedure in 2027. Giorgetti told the hearings that the scenario had worsened and that Italy was no longer in an age of budget deviations without rules. He closed the cycle of hearings by saying the government would fund selective measures for investment, competitiveness, and the needs of families, workers and businesses.

Coalition demands on the budget

Corriere della Sera reports that the League repeated its long list of demands on Monday, including a pension at 64, an extension of the flat tax to self-employed workers, the abolition of the Rai licence fee, and a 5 billion euro contribution from bank windfall profits. Forza Italia pushed its own priorities: a no-tax area for young people, abolition of the car ownership tax (bollo) for all first cars, deduction of medical expenses in the year they are incurred rather than the following one, and an increase of the second income tax bracket (33%) up to 60,000 euros. Corriere says the bracket increase is considered certain for the next budget law. Asked about windfall profits, Giorgetti replied:

Everyone who has the possibility to contribute will contribute.

Timeline ahead

The parliamentary vote on the deviation was expected on Monday, 12 October, and the government will approve the Documento programmatico di bilancio (DPB) afterwards, which will set the priorities of the 2027 budget law. The EU is waiting for the budget document by 20 October, and AGI reports that the text could slip beyond that date. Giorgetti said the government would try to arrive by 20 October, while noting that the discussion with the Commission is moving forward and that a European Council would take place during the week, where the matter might be discussed. He said he wanted to present a budget law with defined contours. AGI describes the budget law as tied to the negotiation over how the EU energy flexibility will be used.