“At this moment there is not the serenity necessary to discuss this reform. They gave a sharp acceleration to the law. So Italians experience it as highly divisive”
Thus Roberto Occhiuto, president of the Calabria Region and deputy national secretary of Forza Italia, in an interview with “Corriere della Sera”.
It is said that this law will penalize the southern regions. “If it generated this disparity it would not be a good law. The text approved by the Senate is a good text, but it must be improved.”
Antonio Tajani, the secretary of Forza Italia, said that the issue of Lep, the essential levels of performance, is fundamental.
“I think exactly like him. According to Tajani, it is also essential that the law supports the southern regions.”
“We need to review the issue which concerns precisely the subjects where LEPs are not foreseen. It is an aspect that was raised by everyone in Calabria in the Regional Council, even by the League.
The text says that for the subjects where LEPs are foreseen, before making an agreement, it is necessary to define and finance them, but the money is not yet there”.
Isn’t this the case for subjects where there are no Leps?
“No, and that’s the problem. Because an instant after the agreement, some regions could ask to stipulate agreements to be autonomous on some matters. Foreign trade, for example. What would happen for farmers in Campania and Calabria who export their goods? Abroad they might discover that the country is divided in half.”
“Preparatory to the agreement there must be an assessment of the impact of the agreement itself. I think it’s necessary.
The Autonomy that I am thinking of is a law that gives the regions the possibility of doing more without this damaging the rights of citizens of other regions”.
You and your party in the South can speak with a rather authoritative voice thanks to the election results.
“In Calabria yes, we had 18% and we were the second party two points behind Fratelli d’Italia.
In the rest of the South it didn’t go so well. It’s the fault of differentiated autonomy”.
But if it’s not yet law…
“It’s our fault. We left this issue to the Democratic Party. In the South it was their only argument.”
So you contest the law?
“It needs to be discussed. I don’t want to question the commitments made with the government on the three reforms. But they must not be flags of individual political forces.
On the justice reform, which is the one Forza Italia cares about most, we have not placed any ultimatum. It would be appropriate for this to happen for other reforms too”, concludes governor Occhiuto.
