December 30, 2025, 3:39 p.mDecember 30, 2025, 3:39 p.m
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Shortly before the turn of the year, the Italian Parliament finally passed the 2026 budget.
The financial package of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing three-party coalition, with a total volume of around 22 billion euros (20.4 billion francs), has now also been approved by the Chamber of Deputies. The Senate had already approved it shortly before Christmas. The final approval was preceded by weeks of debate and adjustments.
The Meloni government underwent a vote of confidence on Monday evening to finalize the budget unchanged so that it can come into force just in time for January 1, 2026.
With the budget, Meloni wants to reduce new debt for 2026 to below three percent of gross domestic product (GDP), as stipulated by the EU stability criteria. Italy is one of the most indebted countries in Europe. The EU had repeatedly called on Rome to reduce the deficit. The government had committed to implementing this in 2026.
Budget contains measures worth 22 billion euros
The innovations include, among other things, investment incentives for companies and tax relief for employees. The rate for incomes between around 28,000 and 50,000 euros should fall from 35 to 33 percent. This is intended to increase the purchasing power of Italians. The retirement age should increase gradually in some cases. Measures aimed at taxing banks and insurance companies should help finance the budget.
More money should flow into defense with the new budget. In addition, the gold reserves of the Banca d’Italia should be considered the property of the Italian people. The measure, which was watched like a hawk by the European Central Bank, was said to be a symbolic act.
After the vote, Meloni described the budget as a “serious and responsible package of measures” that focuses the “limited resources available on some fundamental priorities.” Opposition leader Elly Schlein from the social democratic Partito Democratico (PD), however, said the budget did not address the most important concerns of Italians and was wrong. “It is an austerity budget that envisages zero growth,” said Schlein. (sda/dpa)