The government is set to approve a
3.6 billion euro economic support package for the coronavirus
emergency, Economy Minister Roberto Gulatieri said Monday.
The package is worth some 0.2% of GDP, he said.
The measures will be agreed in the comings days with unions
and employers, category associations and local bodies, he said.
The relevant decree will be approved by Friday, Gualtieri
said.
He was optimistic that Brussels would give the go-ahead for
the use of this budget flexibility.
The package follows an initial package of measures for
affected zones agreed Friday night.
The first decree features a six-month suspension of utility
bills and trash-collection taxes for the areas hit by the
epidemic.
It is also set to give small and medium-sized enterprises
priority access to funding and income-support for workers who
are laid off or have their hours cut because of the crisis.
Furthermore, firms in the coronavirus areas will be able to
take a 12-month break from mortgage payments and in some cases
it will be possible to request a delay in payment of tax and
social-security contributions.
There will also be a clampdown on attempts to cash in on the
crisis with speculative price hikes on products that are in high
demand because of the emergency, such as face masks.
The package has special measures for the tourism sector,
which is one of the hardest hit areas of the economy.
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