Italy: 24 million allocated for damages caused by bad weather. Controversy over insurance policy

Twenty million for the damage caused by bad weather in Emilia Romagna and 4 for the Marche. The Council of Ministers allocates the first resources aimed at dealing with the emergency and declares a state of emergency as a consequence of the exceptional meteorological events that occurred on 17 and 18 September in the provinces of Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, Ferrara, Ravenna, Forlì-Cesena and Rimini and along the coast of the Marche. “We will continue to guarantee maximum support to the entire affected population”, says Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on social media.

But alongside the controversy between the executive, the centre-right and the Emilia Romagna region on the interventions and resources that would not have been used, there is also a controversy over insurance policies for homes, with the League immediately raising a wall and the opposition accusing the government of introducing a tax on homes. “The law on insurance policies for businesses is already mandatory, it was voted by Parliament last December and in the 2024 budget law.

Musumeci: “Law already approved”

For companies, there is a law already approved, there is nothing to postpone”, first of all emphasizes the Minister for Civil Protection Nello Musumeci, commenting on the FdI amendment in the Senate that aimed to postpone the start of the legislation to the end of 2025, therefore by one year. Amendment then withdrawn by the promoter. As for the possibility of a policy also for private homes, the minister observes: on this point “a discussion is open, a reasoning to understand in the meantime if the insurance companies are available. We will see how it goes. We are aiming for a public-private partnership, then we need to decide whether it should be, as I maintain at least in the first phase, optional”.

League against the hypothesis for the houses

But the idea of ​​a private home insurance policy clashes with the clear opposition of the League: “We do not live in an ethical state where the state imposes”, says Matteo Salvini categorically, “the state can give directions, but it does not impose, prohibit or oblige to do”. And the League’s Stefano Candiani adds: “it is an intelligent proposal if done intelligently, it is a stupid proposal if done stupidly”. In other words, “if it means just taking out insurance, it is in fact configured as a tax in favor of insurance companies and it is certainly not a proposal that can be shared and accepted”. Some opposition forces are also critical: “The government’s response to the climate crisis is an insurance policy paid by families and businesses”, says the Green Angelo Bonelli. “it is a disguised wealth tax”, claims Silvia Fregolenti of Iv. And the national coordinator, Raffaella Paita, doubles down: “it is a hidden tax”.

But Meloni lets it go and does not raise any controversy and from Syracuse, where she inaugurated the Expo DiviNazione, connected to the G7 Agriculture, she cuts it short: “I work, I leave the controversies to others”.

In the evening, speaking with Agi, Minister Musumeci explained again: “We are working for a public-private partnership also with Ministers Urso and Giorgetti. The operation is not simple, there is no point in hiding behind a finger, because we must also take into account the social realities in which we intervene”. “In any case, I am convinced that the insurance policy against natural risks today, also given climate change, is a necessity. It is a question of understanding whether to make the policy mandatory or, as I would suggest, optional, but a citizen who has built in a risk area and wants to defend his property, by signing a policy, also obtains the support of the State which is no longer in a position to provide resources for everyone and forever after a catastrophe”.