ROME – Italy’s new prime minister, Mario Draghi, called on Wednesday for unity and sacrifice as the country moves forward with vaccines and seeks to take advantage of a $ 240 billion European aid package to reform the economy and address persistent inequalities.
In his first speech as head of government, Draghi addressed the Italian Senate for an hour in a white mask before a vote of confidence for a broad-based government that he is guaranteed to win. Former head of the European Central Bank, he sounded perfectly like the bank’s president presenting an economic outlook and said that his government had “the possibility, or rather, the responsibility to start a new reconstruction” after the traumatic blow of the pandemic.
He articulated Italy’s existential challenges, which he considered the most severe since World War II. But he also presented a vision for ambitious tax and bureaucratic reforms and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to play a central role in a more integrated European Union.
In a speech largely devoid of politics, he offered a brusque response to populist forces in his government after one of its leaders raised doubts about Italy’s commitment to remain in the eurozone. In the past decade, Italian populists have grown in popularity in part by questioning whether the country has benefited from the European single currency or whether it would be better off without the economic restrictions that come with it.
“Supporting this government means endorsing the irreversibility of the choice of the euro,” said Draghi, a clear response to Matteo Salvini, the leader of the League’s nationalist party, who said on Tuesday that only death was “irreversible”.
The new prime minister said that supporting his government means “sharing the prospect of an ever closer European Union”, while sitting next to a member of Salvini’s party cabinet, who accused the European Union of meddling in affairs from Italy.
Draghi paid tribute to his predecessor, Giuseppe Conte, whose government fell last month. The mention of Mr. Conte’s name generated applause and mockery and Draghi quickly moved on and made it clear that Italy was now on a new path.
He reaffirmed the country’s support for its western allies in NATO, a reversal of previous governments that flirted with more authoritarian leaders. He also called for closer collaboration with Germany and France, criticized human rights abuses in Russia and spoke about tensions around China.
While the previous government was criticized for what some considered a frivolous view of flower-shaped pavilions as sites for coronavirus vaccination, Draghi said that inoculations need to occur quickly and efficiently in all available public and private spaces, like any other. hopes of easing economic pain and ensuring the country’s recovery and future depended on first defeating the virus.
“The virus is everyone’s enemy,” he said.
More than anything, his speech called for action in a crucial year for the country, especially as the April deadline is approaching to present a plan to the European Union on how Italy intends to spend the more than 200 billion euros – about $ 240 billion – in Covid aid funds that the bloc has agreed to distribute.
Proponent of what he called “good debt”, Draghi emphasized the importance of investing this money in sectors that will move the country forward. He talked about reducing economic inequalities through investments in education and ambitious public projects, such as high-speed trains. He also envisioned new jobs, especially in the south of Italy, economically disadvantaged.
“This is our mission as Italians: to deliver a better and more just country for our children and grandchildren,” said Draghi, 73, asking if his generation was willing to take the sacrifices “our grandparents and parents made for us”.
Draghi’s acceptance of a globalized world and his vision of making Italy more competitive served as an oxygen explosion for pro-European Italians.
He called for a review of the country’s tax code, bureaucracy and glacial judiciary, which often arrest companies in lawsuits and astonish foreign investors. As required by the European Union, he prioritized investments in digitization, green jobs and renewable energy.
He also addressed some of the open wounds of the Italian economy and society. He said the country needs to improve the prospects for talented young people who often seek careers elsewhere and acknowledged that Italian women suffered “one of Europe’s worst salary disparities” and “chronic scarcity” in prominent managerial positions.
“True gender equality does not mean self-respect for the quotas for women required by law,” said Draghi, calling for real equality in working conditions.
At the head of the country with the oldest population in Europe, he emphasized the need to improve social services for pregnant and postpartum women, saying it was vital to “overcome the choice between family and work”, especially in the south of the country.
At certain points, Draghi left the numbers and reform projects behind for some linguistic flourishes. But the haughty oratory did not seem to be his strong point, and the attention in the chamber at times seemed to wander while legislators murmured.
Draghi’s power, however, is not in his charisma. It is in your reputation for competence and achievement.
Ultimately, he needs Parliament’s support to do this, and he pooled some of that support on Wednesday, when he said he did not believe commentators’ assessment of his arrival on the scene as a technocratic rescue of a dying political system. He said that only the spirit of national unity and the sacrifice of the country’s elected legislators could help Italy.
“Today, unity is not an option – unity is a must,” concluded Draghi, standing up to a standing ovation. “But it is a duty driven by what I am sure that unites everyone: the love of Italy.”