EU’s Gentiloni says Italy can’t afford any delays on recovery plan

CERNOBBIO, Italy (Reuters) – Italy cannot afford any delays within the implementation of its post-COVID restoration programme, the European Union’s Financial Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni stated, because the nation heads to the polls this month to elect a brand new authorities.

Requested if adjustments to the EU-wide restoration programme may very well be thought-about to have in mind the vitality disaster going through the bloc, Gentiloni stated vitality transition was already a core goal of the programme and solely a fine-tuning of the restoration plans international locations have agreed was doable.

“What we actually can’t afford is to cease and begin over again,” he stated on the sidelines of the Ambrosetti enterprise discussion board.

“For international locations receiving massive contributions equivalent to Italy or Spain the restoration plan actually is a matter of a race towards time,” he added.

Rome is entitled to some 200 billion euros ($199 billion)($205 billion) in low cost loans and grants from the fund set as much as assist the bloc’s 27 international locations get better from the COVID-19 pandemic.

($1 = 1.0049 euros)

(Reporting by Valentina Za; Modifying by Keith Weir)