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☆ Analysis: EU, Italy talk tough on migration but action won't be easy
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Alvise Armellini | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/5] An Italian Coast Guard vessel carrying migrants rescued at sea passes between tourist boats, on Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy. Well over 10,000 migrants reached the Italian island - whose permanent population is about 6,000 - last week. Lampedusa sits in the Mediterranean between Tunisia, Malta and the larger Italian island of Sicily and is a first port of call for many migrants seeking to reach the EU. In 2020, it was discontinued as other EU nations balked at Italian requests to have them redistributed around the bloc. Other EU states have not commented publicly on the idea of a naval blockade, which Italy says would also need the consent of North African states.

Persons: Yara, Sophia, Giorgia Meloni, Lampedusa, Meloni, Ursula von der Leyen, Ferruccio Pastore, Pastore, von der Leyen, Maurizio Ambrosini, Jan Strupczewski, Gavin Jones, Janet Lawrence Organizations: Italian Coast Guard, EU, European Union, European, International, European Forum, Research, Immigration, Human, Reuters, Dublin, University of Milan, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, ROME, Tunisia, Malta, Sicily, Europe, Albania, Italian, Rome, Tirana, France, Austria, Dublin, EU, Germany, Brussels, repatriations

☆ EU chief pledges migrant action plan in Italy's Lampedusa
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Yara Nardi Acquire Licensing RightsLAMPEDUSA, Italy Sept 17 (Reuters) - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday visited the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is struggling with a surge in migrant arrivals, and promised a 10-point EU action plan to help Italy deal with the situation. Nearly 126,000 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, almost double the figure by the same date in 2022. Von der Leyen was accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the car carrying them to Lampedusa's migrant reception centre was briefly blocked by locals protesting over the burden facing the island. The plan includes using the EU's external borders agency Frontex to identify migrants arriving in Italy and repatriate those not eligible for asylum. Frontex would also step up sea and aerial surveillance of migrant boats and help crack down on people-smugglers, von der Leyen said, adding that she had already spoken to several EU leaders about the plan and was confident of their support.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, Giorgia Meloni's, Yara, Von der Leyen, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, von der Leyen, Frontex, Tony Colapinto, Gavin Jones, Louise Heavens Organizations: Italian, REUTERS, Sunday, Meloni, coastguard, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, European, Tunisia, Tunis, Europe

☆ 'We want to leave - wherever that might be,' says Cameroon migrant on Lampedusa
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

She arrived in Lampedusa on Tuesday, travelling with her children, one just 18 months. "I hope the situation improves and they let us leave from here because the living conditions here are not easy. [1/4]Claudine Nsoe, 29, from Cameroon, stands outside with her son Prince on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 15, 2023. Under EU rules, migrants are supposed to file for asylum in the first EU country they reach. Germany, in turn, said this week it would no longer accept migrants from Italy under a voluntary EU redistribution scheme.

Persons: Claudine Nsoe, Nsoe, Prince, Yara, Giorgia, Yara Nardi, Alvise Armellini, Gavin Jones, Nick Macfie Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, EU, Thomson Locations: Cameroon, Lampedusa, North Africa, Libya, Italian, Italy, Sicily, Europe, Italy's, France, Germany

☆ Italy's Lampedusa 'in crisis' with thousands of migrant arrivals - mayor
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Yara Nardi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Migrants wait at the port to be transferred to the mainland, on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, September 14, 2023. "In the past 48 hours, around 7,000 people have arrived in Lampedusa, which has always welcomed them with open arms," mayor Filippo Mannino told Italy's RTL 102.5 radio. "We stand ready to support Italy and this is what we are doing," a Commission spokesperson said. Preliminary data from Spain, another country on the EU's southern flank, showed the number of migrant arrivals to the Canary Islands more than trebled to 2,891 people in the first two weeks of September. Matteo Villa, a migration data analysis expert from the ISPI think tank in Milan, told Reuters migrant arrivals to Italy this year are close to the record registered in 2016, when more than 180,000 people came.

Persons: Yara, Lampedusa, Filippo Mannino, Giorgia, Matteo Salvini, Meloni, Matteo Villa, Gavin Jones, Alvise Armellini, Federico Maccioni, Corina Pons, Keith Weir, Janet Lawrence Organizations: REUTERS, European Commission, European Union, RTL, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Tunisia, Malta, Sicily, Europe, Italian, Budapest, Brussels, Spain, Senegal, Milan, Tunis, Rome, Madrid

☆ Italy's PM: Legal Migration Won't Solve Europe's Demographic Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

ROME (Reuters) - Some legal migration can benefit European economies but migration is not the solution to the continent's demographic crisis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday. She was addressing a summit meeting on demography in Budapest hosted by right-wing nationalist Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a long-time political friend. "I think that a quota of legal migration...can make a positive contribution to our economies, but I remain convinced that it would be more responsible for us to entrust European citizens with the solution to the European welfare system crisis," Meloni said. Meloni's coalition, which came to power last year, has been pushig a nationalist agenda that includes a tough approach to migration, pledges to boost Italy's record low birth rate, legislation against LGBT parenting and the use of foreign words in official documents. (Reporting by Federico Maccioni; editing by Alvise Armellini and editing by Mark Heinrich)

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Viktor Orban, Meloni, Federico Maccioni, Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Italian, Hungarian Locations: ROME, Budapest

☆ Italy's PM says migration won't solve Europe's demographic crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sept 14 (Reuters) - Some legal migration can benefit European economies, but migration is not the solution to the continent's demographic crisis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday as she met right-wing ally Viktor Orban in Budapest. Meloni was addressing a summit meeting on demography hosted by the Hungarian prime minister, a long-time political friend. Carlo Calenda, a centrist Italian opposition politician, called the reference to God "truly singular for the head of government of a liberal democracy. Meloni faces a mounting migration crisis at home, where the tiny, far-southern Italian island of Lampedusa has seen thousands of people coming ashore from Northern Africa over the last few days. Reporting by Federico Maccioni and Angelo Amante; editing by Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich and Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Viktor Orban, Meloni, Carlo Calenda, X, Orban, Federico Maccioni, Angelo Amante, Alvise Armellini, Mark Heinrich, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Italian, European Union, Thomson Locations: Budapest, Hungarian, Italian, Italy, Hungary, Europe, Brussels, Lampedusa, Northern Africa

☆ What lies behind Italy's immigration crisis?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Newly arrived migrants wait to embark on a ferry to the mainland, in the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy, August 27, 2023. Since Jan. 1, around 118,500 sea migrants have landed on Italian shores, a near-record figure that jars with Meloni's election campaign pledges. On current trends, arrivals are near the peak recorded in 2016, when about 181,500 sea migrants arrived in Italy. Members of the ruling coalition have accused the EU of not offering enough support for Italy - but other EU members are also under pressure from immigration. Italy faces more sea arrivals but other countries are dealing with higher overall migration figures, including via land.

Persons: Tony Colapinto, Giorgia Meloni's, Meloni, Alvise Armellini, Angus MacSwan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Migrants, Charities, Thomson Locations: Sicilian, Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Tunisia, Sicily, Europe, Germany, France, Spain, Austria

☆ Italian PM: Strong Partnership With China More Important Than BRI
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

Italian media reported earlier in the day that Italy would quit the BRI and instead seek to revitalise a strategic partnership agreement with China, aimed at fostering economic cooperation, that it first signed in 2004. Meloni met Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Saturday on the G20 sidelines and described the talks as polite and constructive. The Italian government has also been invited to a BRI Forum that China will host in October, she added. Italian politicians have questioned the value of the BRI agreement signed by a previous administration in 2019. In its statement on Saturday, Meloni's office mentioned the 20th anniversary next year of a separate Global Strategic Partnership signed by China and a government led by Silvio Berlusconi in 2004.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, haven't, Meloni, Li Qiang, Silvio Berlusconi, Keith Weir, Giuseppe Fonte, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Initiative, Strategic Partnership Locations: ROME, China, Italy, West, Beijing, New Delhi

☆ Italian PM: Strong partnership with China more important than BRI
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, haven't, Meloni, Li Qiang, Silvio Berlusconi, Keith Weir, Giuseppe Fonte, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Initiative, Strategic Partnership, Thomson Locations: China, Italy, West, Beijing, New Delhi

The "Made in Italy" fund, which was approved in May, will have an initial endowment of 700 million euros ($756 million) in 2023 and an additional 300 million next year in state cash. Saudi Arabia will focus on energy, sustainability, supply chains and sport to expand its presence in Italy, Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said at the same event. Italian exports to Saudi Arabia totalled just over 4 billion euros in 2022, much from manufacturing, while imports totalled more than 7.4 billion euros, the bulk from oil products. Also at the Milan event, leading Italian energy company Eni (ENI.MI) and Saudi Acwa Power (2082.SE) agreed to jointly develop a green hydrogen project in the Middle East and Africa. Saudi Arabia has a well advanced project dubbed NEOM to produce green hydrogen at home while Italy so far has not developed yet any plan to produce it in significant quantity.

Persons: Adolfo Urso, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, shrugging, Urso, Khalid al, Falih, Power, De Nora, Giuseppe Fonte, Keith Weir, Angus MacSwan, Alexander Smith Organizations: Energy, Italy's Industry, Reuters, Italy's, Investment, European Union, EU, Saudi, Eni, Saudi Acwa, Thomson Locations: Italy, MILAN, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Rome, Riyadh, Milan, Kingdom, Meloni, East, North Africa, Russia, Africa

☆ G20 New Delhi summit 2023: Which countries and leaders will attend?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A paramilitary soldier stands guard outside Le Meridien hotel during a rehearsal ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India, September 2, 2023. BRITISH PRIME MINISTER RISHI SUNAKSunak is expected attend the summit on his first official trip to India as Britain's prime minister. GERMAN CHANCELLOR OLAF SCHOLZScholz has said the upcoming G20 summit in India remains important despite the absence of Russia and China. SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSARamaphosa has expressed full support for India's G20 presidency while conveying his intent to attend the summit. BANGLADESH PRIME MINISTER SHEIKH HASINABangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is likely to attend the G20 summit in New Delhi, according to Indian media reports.

Persons: Le, Adnan Abidi, JOE BIDEN Biden, Biden, XI, Li Qiang, Xi Jinping, Xi, VLADIMIR PUTIN, Sergei Lavrov, Vladimir Putin, Putin, JUSTIN TRUDEAU Trudeau, Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, RISHI SUNAK Sunak, KISHIDA, ANTHONY ALBANESE, YOON SUK, YEOL Yoon, OLAF SCHOLZ Scholz, EMMANUEL MACRON, Modi, SAUDI ARABIA'S CROWN PRINCE MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN, CYRIL RAMAPHOSA Ramaphosa, TAYYIP ERDOGAN, ALBERTO FERNANDEZ Fernandez, BOLA TINUBU Tinubu, LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA, URSULA VON DER, CHARLES MICHEL The, SHEIKH HASINA, Sheikh Hasina, ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR, JOKO, Aftab Ahmed, Shivangi, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Criminal Court, ICC, BRITISH, AUSTRALIAN, SOUTH, Associated Press, SAUDI ARABIA'S CROWN, African Union, NIGERIA'S, LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA Brazil, OF, EUROPEAN, CHARLES MICHEL The European Union, BANGLADESH, Thomson Locations: Le Meridien, New Delhi, India, DELHI, India's, Ukraine, U.S, RUSSIAN, Russia, South Africa, Africa, Indonesia, Philippines, China, Saudi, SHEIKH HASINA Bangladesh, Bangladesh, MELONI Italy

☆ EU's Gentiloni confident over budget rule deal by year-end deadline
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

EU Economic Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni holds a news conference on the European Commission's economic forecasts for the EU for 2023 and 2024 on GDP and inflation, in Brussels, Belgium February 13, 2023. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCERNOBBIO, Italy, Sept 2 (Reuters) - European Union Commissioner for Economy Paolo Gentiloni said on Saturday he was confident an agreement over re-implementing EU budget rules would be reached by year-end, ruling out an extension of their suspension into 2024. "I'm confident, I'd say I have to be confident, that a deal (over the new budget rules) can be reached by year-end," Gentiloni told reporters on the sidelines of the European House Ambrosetti economic forum in Cernobbio. Italy is preparing a difficult 2024 budget in which it will seek to meet Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's tax-cutting promises while at the same time reducing the deficit while faced with an economic slowdown. Gentiloni said failing to reach a deal on reviving the rules would mean a return to previous budget rules that did not help promote economic growth and cut sovereign debt in the bloc.

Persons: Paolo Gentiloni, Johanna Geron, Gentiloni, Giancarlo Giorgetti, Giorgia, Christine Lagarde, Elvira Pollina, Giselda, Tomasz Janowski, Helen Popper Our Organizations: EU, REUTERS, Union, House, Italian Economy, European Commission, European Central Bank, ECB, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Italy, Ukraine

☆ Italy's bad loan proposal risks damaging crucial market, senior banker says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Sept 1 (Reuters) - A law proposed by the Italian prime minister's party to help those in arrears risks damaging the country's non-performing loan (NPL) market, which played a crucial role in helping banks offload sour debt, a senior banker active in the sector said on Friday. It aims to give borrowers the right to repay the original loan at a price equivalent to the ratio between the loan's gross nominal value and the average portfolio price, plus a 20% premium. Bossi said the measure could prompt foreign operators active in the sector to shift their focus from the Italian market. "This would be a damage for banks because it would reduce demand for their soured debt", the banker said. "We should keep in mind that Italian banks are now sound because the NPLs market helped the system offload some 350 billion euros of debts which went soured", he added.

Persons: Meloni's, Giovanni Bossi, Bossi, Elvira Pollina, David Holmes Organizations: Cherry Bank, Reuters, European Central Bank, Thomson Locations: Italy

☆ Italy's president calls for more legal migration to beat people trafficking
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Juan Medina/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Aug 25 (Reuters) - The European Union should allow more legal migration into its borders to stop people trafficking, Italian President Sergio Mattarella said on Friday, amid a surge in arrivals by sea to his country. Meloni's government has partly followed Mattarella's advice, saying in July it would raise entry quotas for non-EU migrant workers to 452,000 for 2023-2025. The Italian president, who as head of state is a non-partisan figure, said action needed to be taken at EU level. Migration has long been a political hot potato within the bloc, hampering joint decisions by its 27 member states. "This drawing reminds me that, behind the migration numbers and percentages which we often list, there are countless individual people, each one with their own story, projects, dreams, future," the president said.

Persons: Juan Medina, Sergio Mattarella, Giorgia Meloni's, Mattarella, Alvise Armellini, Christina Fincher Organizations: Uno, Guardia, REUTERS, Rights, European, Thomson Locations: Lampedusa, Italy, North Africa, Rimini, Europe

☆ After plunging into the political mainstream, Italy's far-right leader Giorgia Meloni is now shocking markets and upsetting big business
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

After plunging into the political mainstream and winning over her more moderate counterparts in Brussels, hardline Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is now shaking things up on home soil. Europe's main banking index dropped some 2.7% on Aug. 8 after Italy announced it would impose a 40% windfall tax on banks. Airlines have rebuffed other policy measures, with a new government plan to curb prices when flying to certain destinations. So far during her mandate, Meloni has largely fallen in line with mainstream political positions at home and abroad, despite concerns from some that she may push her country to the fringes. Federico Santi, a senior analyst at consultancy Eurasia Group, told CNBC via email that her backtrack on the windfall tax "was a major misstep, in perception and substance."

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Federico Santi, Santi Organizations: Airlines, European Commission, European Union, Kremlin, Eurasia Group, CNBC Locations: Brussels, Italian, Italy, Ukraine

☆ Airlines take aim at Italy's plans to bring down sky-high prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An Airbus A380 of German air carrier Lufthansa is seen at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany, February 12, 2019. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File PhotoROME, Aug 7 (Reuters) - A group of airlines operating in Italy on Monday criticised government plans to curb ticket prices at the height of the summer season, saying they could breach European Union free market rules. Ticket prices to Italy's two main islands have soared in recent weeks. Companies including Lufthansa (LHAG.DE), EasyJet (EZJ.L), American Airlines (AAL.O) and Delta (DAL.N) are members of the IBAR, the association's website shows. Measures in a decree law take effect immediately, but parliament has to ratify them within two months, otherwise they lapse.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Giorgia Meloni's, Angelo Amante, Alvise Organizations: Airbus, Lufthansa, REUTERS, Monday, Union, Italian, of Airlines Representatives, Companies, American Airlines, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Italy, Sicily, Sardinia, EU

☆ Far-right Italian prime minister sues the lead singer of Placebo for calling her a 'fascist' and a 'racist'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Italy's far-right prime minister is suing the lead singer of Placebo for calling her a "fascist." At a concert last month, Brian Molko also described Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as a "racist." Meloni was a youth activist in a group founded by a member of dictator Benito Mussolini's government. Now, according to press reports, Meloni herself is suing Molko for defamation, the latest in a string of lawsuits against critics. But as a youth activist, Meloni herself praised the country's former fascist dictator saying that, "everything he did, he did for Italy."

Persons: Brian Molko, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Benito Mussolini's, Benito Mussolini, Molko, David Broder, Elly Schlein Organizations: Service, BBC Locations: Wall, Silicon, Turin, Italy

☆ Telecom Italia's quarterly core profit rises as domestic revenues edge up
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

which was above a company-provided analyst consensus of 1.3 billion euros. TIM's net financial debt rose to 26.1 billion euros ($28.57 billion) as of June 30 from 24.6 billion euros in the same period last year. The company confirmed its financial targets for 2023, including a stabilisation of service revenue and core earnings at the domestic level. The government has special vetting powers on any deal involving TIM's grid and wants to join KKR's bid to keep a strategic oversight on Italy's main telecommunications infrastructure. The grid sale has faced heavy reservations from TIM's top investor, Vivendi (VIV.PA), which is demanding a higher valuation to back a deal.

Persons: Yara, Pietro Labriola, Giorgia, Elvira Pollina, Urvi, Chris Reese, Leslie Adler Organizations: REUTERS, Telecom Italia, KKR, TIM, U.S, TIM's, Vivendi, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Milan, Bengaluru

☆ Italy just slammed China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative, saying it was an 'atrocious' decision to join and that it's barely benefited from the deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Kai Xiang Teo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

He said the pact had multiplied China's exports to Italy, but made little difference to Italy's exports to China, according to a Reuters report Sunday. When Italy pledged to join China's BRI in 2019, it was the largest economy to do so. However, since then, Italy's imports from China have almost doubled, but the European nation's exports to China have barely increased. Italy's exports to China rose to 16.4 billion euros, or $18 billion, in 2022, from 13 billion euros in 2019. On the other hand, China's exports to Italy rose from 31.7 billion euros in 2019 to 57.5 billion euros in 2022, Reuters reported, citing data from Italy's economic observatory.

Persons: Guido Crosetto, Crosetto, —, della Sera, China's, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni Organizations: Initiative, Service, della, Strategic, International Studies, Reuters, Politico, Eurasia Group Locations: Italy, China's, Wall, Silicon, Italian, China, Europe, Asia, Indonesia, Poland, Egypt, Beijing, Washington

WASHINGTON/ROME, July 27 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden hosts Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the White House on Thursday, with the Ukraine war and Italy's relations with China expected to be among the top items on the agenda. Meloni is also expected on Thursday to meet with Republican House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who has said he could consider an impeachment inquiry into Biden. The G7 formally launched an alternative to Belt and Road, the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, last year. Italy is planning to discuss with the U.S. how to support the development and stability of Africa, Meloni's office said, which will also be among the main topics of Italy's G7 presidency. Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington and Angelo Amante in Rome Editing by Don Durfee and Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Joe Biden, Giorgia Meloni, Italy's, Biden, Kevin McCarthy, Meloni's, Meloni, Trevor Hunnicutt, Angelo Amante, Don Durfee, Diane Craft Organizations: Italian, White, Republican, Russia, Initiative, Partnership for Global Infrastructure, Investment, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, ROME, Ukraine, China, Italian, Washington, Beijing's, Italy, Beijing, Japan, Rome, North Africa, Africa

ROME, July 26 (Reuters) - Italy announced measures on Wednesday to help families and businesses hit by extreme climate events, as the country reels from a heatwave in the south and fierce storms in the north. A draft seen by Reuters showed that the decree had a cost of 10 million euros ($11.09 million) for state coffers. The government is ready to earmark some 10 million euros to refund airline tickets and hotel reservations to tourists without insurance coverage, Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci said. The Lombardy region around Milan has already asked the government to declare a state of emergency and has estimated damage of over 40 million euros, Musumeci said. The state of emergency, one approved by the government, removes bureaucratic obstacles and speeds up procedures to provide financial help.

Persons: Giorgia, Marina Calderone, Nello Musumeci, Musumeci Organizations: heatwave, Labour, Reuters, Civil, Thomson Locations: Italy, Sicily, Catania, Etna, Milan, Lombardy

☆ Italy readies special furlough scheme to save workers from heatwave
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] People cool themselves at the Trevi Fountain during a heatwave across Italy as temperatures are expected to cool off in Rome, Italy, July 20, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File PhotoROME, July 25 (Reuters) - Italy is preparing special measures to help construction and agricultural firms keep staff at home during an intense summer heatwave, government officials and trade unionists said on Tuesday. Giorgia Meloni's cabinet will probably discuss the furlough scheme at a meeting on Wednesday, Labour Minister Marina Calderone told the unions at a gathering about the weather emergency. "Nothing is provided to help people working for delivery firms or seasonal workers, or other categories of employees," it said in a statement. Italian hospitals in the regions worst hit by soaring temperatures are seeing a jump in heat-related emergencies, medics have said.

Persons: Trevi, Remo Casilli, Giorgia Meloni's, Marina Calderone, Giuseppe Fonte, Gavin Jones Organizations: REUTERS, Labour, Italy's, heatwave, heatwaves, Thomson Locations: Italy, Rome

But she said more needed to be done to prevent migrants trying to make the perilous Mediterranean crossing via unauthorised means. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen echoed Meloni's point about offering legal routes into the 27-nation European Union (EU). Europe has pledged 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in aid to help Tunisia with its battered economy, with 100 million euros speficially earmarked for tackling illegal migration. The EU could work with countries such as Tunisia in expanding their production of renewable energy to the benefit of all, she added. Conference host Italy is struggling to cope with the number of unauthorised migrants arriving in centres such as its far southern island of Lampedusa.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Ursula von der Leyen, von der Leyen, Mohamed al, POPE, Peter's, Pope Francis, COVID, Antonio Tajani, Ahmed Elumami, Foo Yun Chee, Conor Humphries Organizations: European Union, Presidential, Conference, EU, Thomson Locations: Italian, Rome, Europe, Italy, EU, Tunisia, St, Africa, Lampedusa, Tripoli, Brussels

☆ Italian Antitrust body backs deal to soften fees on digital payments
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Giuseppe Fonte | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummaryCompanies Deal would allow Italy to drop threat of levyFinancial firms demanded Antitrust assurancesTerms agreed not expected to alter status quoROME, July 20 (Reuters) - Italian Antitrust body has given a green light to a deal negotiated by retailers, banks and payment firms to soften fees on small card transactions as demanded by the government, according to sources and documents seen by Reuters. People familiar with the matter said the parties had finalised the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) last month, but financial firms were worried about the risk of future fines for competition law infringements. As a result, the Treasury sought an opinion from the Antitrust authority. The MOU, seen by Reuters, encourages financial companies to launch competitive commercial initiatives on payments not exceeding 30 euros but stops short of demanding firm promises. The Treasury could summon the parties on July 27 to try to formalise the deal, a source said.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Rome, Mario Draghi, Keith Weir Organizations: Reuters, Mastercard, Visa, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Italy

☆ Italy foreign minister Tajani succeeds Berlusconi as Forza Italia chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROME, July 15 (Reuters) - Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani was elected on Saturday as leader of Forza Italia, the conservative party founded 29 years ago by billionaire media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi who died last month. "I am receiving an almost impossible inheritance," he told the Rome gathering of Forza Italia's national, European and local representatives. Forza Italia is the junior partner among the three main parties in Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government, behind the premier's own Brothers of Italy and Matteo Salvini's League. Recent polls put Forza Italia's support at about 7%, behind the League on around 10% and Brothers of Italy close to 30%. After beginning his political activity in a tiny monarchist movement in the 1980s, Tajani joined Forza Italia when it was founded in 1994 and was Berlusconi's spokesman in his first government that year.

Persons: Antonio Tajani, Silvio Berlusconi, Tajani, Berlusconi, Matteo Salvini's, Gavin Jones, David Holmes Organizations: Forza Italia, Forza Italia's, League, Thomson Locations: Italy, Brussels, Rome, Giorgia

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