After the strong post-recession recovery, Italy’s economy is now moving towards growth rates “in line with potential” and the slowdown that the IMF forecasts for 2026 – with a limited plus 0.2% of GDP – reflects the disappearance of the Superbonus and the uncertainty about the Pnrr funds. During the press conference on the report on prospects in Europe, the deputy director of the European department of the IMF, Helge Berger, criticized the Superbonus and these types of incentives: they do not help productivity, he said.
Asked what to do to ensure a sustainable path for public debt, “at the top of the list are fiscal incentives, many of which are not efficient in helping Italy on the road to productivity. The Superbonus is an example of this – he said – together to others”.
Furthermore, in Italy “there are loopholes in the tax system that limit the tax base and revenue”, while according to Berger it is also necessary to intervene on subsidies to support the cost of living.
On what might help: “Making sure that reforms are on track. And then there’s a lot of work to be done on education reforms and infrastructure,” he said.
When asked specifically about the bridge project over the Strait of Messina, the IMF responded that on infrastructure projects they usually look at overall investments and not at individual projects. “But it is clear that on every individual project, which is part of a plan in any country, you have to evaluate costs and benefits and you only want to do what has a net benefit. That must be managed with good governance. These principles apply to ‘Italy like any other country’.
Tags: Italy inefficient tax incentives Superbonus idealistanews
