«The “Riparti Piemonte” bonuses, this is how we brought the Piedmontese economy out of Covid» [VIDEO] – Lavocedialba.it

In the most dramatic months of Covid Piedmont had to face, together with the health emergency, a second emergency. That of the economic survival of many businesses and categories whose activities had been stopped by the lockdown. A drama within a drama, which needed to be addressed immediately with measures that prevented the collapse of a system, and at the same time prepared its full restart once it returned to normality.
«In those days – remember the group leader of the Brothers of Italy in the regional council Paolo Bongioanni – I had the honor of being called by President Cirio to help compose a huge plan to support businesses penalized by the closure and stop imposed by Covid. A maxi-intervention which, exactly like the pandemic, was unprecedented in the history of our Region. In a few days we sifted through the regional budget and that of our Finpiemonte finance company, to find all the available items and items and we poured them into a maneuver that we called the “Start again Piedmont” composed of two laws. A maneuver that would give a shock and an act of confidence in the ability of our businesses to restart, and demonstrate to them the closeness of the institutions».

May 2020. In a few days, the Assembly of Palazzo Lascaris approves the two measures for which Bongioanni was speaker in the chamber, with close meetings and real marathons of Council meetings.
The regional law 12, entitled “First financial support interventions to combat the Covid-19 emergency”, which allocates 153 million for the economic categories affected by the coronavirus, of which 116 are granted as a non-repayable grant to support commercial activities and 37 for healthcare personnel. And law 13 follows, which provides various bonus formulas to the most diverse production sectors most penalized by the pandemic. Two measures of which Piedmont was the leader, then followed by other Regions: resources reached the recipients quickly, overcoming the bureaucratic delays that too often in Italy afflict and frustrate the best intentions.
«Today, rightly, we tend to remove that bad moment and look forward» reflects Bongioanni. «But we must rethink what this non-repayable compensation could have meant for the categories most affected by the Covid closures, stopped or forced to face heavy out-of-pocket expenses to adapt to the regulations imposed by the pandemic».

The bonuses of the Piedmont Region have reached the most diverse production categories. Some examples. They range from 800 euros per capita for mountain guides, guides and tour leaders to 1,500 for all activities and types of retail trade. One thousand euros for each tattoo and piercing operator, 1,500 for street vendors, 2,500 for restaurants and bars, hairdressers and beauty services, discos and dance halls.
«The world of amateur sport was also heavily penalized. For this reason, “Riparti Piemonte” has provided 4 million and 350 thousand euros in bonuses to amateur sports associations and clubs. And we have set up a guarantee fund of five million euros to advance the redundancy fund for employees of companies stopped by the pandemic, with an amendment signed by me».

However, among the sectors most affected was undoubtedly that of tourisma sector that has become increasingly central and strategic in the Piedmontese economy and therefore all the more paralyzed by the lockdown, closures and safety measures imposed by the emergency.

Watch the video here:

Bongioanni: «Through the “Riparti Piemonte” we managed to provide non-repayable refreshments with a total loan of 10 million and 734 thousand euros to the entire Piedmontese accommodation system: from the hotel sector of every category to the non-hotel sector with guest houses, B&Bs, farmhouses, holiday accommodation, houses for holidays, villages, residences, hostels, campsites and any type of structure».
In addition to keeping the accommodation system alive at a time when the tourist movement was practically dead, it was also necessary to prepare its restart in view of the end of the emergency.

«In the maxi-decree “Riparti Piemonte” – Bongioanni recalls – the measure we called “Riparti Turismo” allocated two million euros for promotional campaigns that promoted the tourism relaunch of the Region and the economic restart of the entire supply chain. We have significantly strengthened the provisions of the historic law 18 of 1999 on tourism offers. And to give a boost to the demand for tourism towards Piedmont, I have allocated the first five million for the first edition of a measure which – proven by the facts – today I would not hesitate to define as revolutionary: the “Piedmont Holiday Voucher”».
A competitive formula whose success has proven to be a real exploit. It made Piedmontese tourism reborn and gallop. It was awarded in Rome as the best initiative created by an Italian region. We will talk about it in depth in a future report. Bongioanni: «I obtained that the “Piedmont Holiday Voucher” was successfully re-proposed in all subsequent years, including this 2024 in view of the upcoming summer tourist season. I will make sure that it can be refinanced for the years to come, whatever role I am called upon to play in the next regional administration».