Big cuts to the Ministry of Environment

The numbers that have emerged from the Italian “Stability Law” paint a negative picture for the future of the environment.  That is according to a report by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) that denounces the fact that “the funds made available by the Minister between 2008 and 2012 are being reduced by third from €649 million to little over €513 million and will further decline in the three successive years to €504 million in 2012 and €496 million in 2013.”

The cuts, if compared with ministries like cultural or agriculture, for many organisations “are tragic.” According to the WWF, the Italian Minister of Cultural Heritage and Activities, Sandro Bondi,  will have €1,320 million available in 2011 (in 2008 the sum was €1,930 million), while the Minister of Agriculture will manage €1,320 million compared with €1,754 million in 2008.

A cut of 30 per cent for the first and little over 20 per cent for the second, reads the report, in contrast with a cut of 60 per cent to the Ministry of the Environment, moving it to last position in terms of funds available to a government department. The gap appears more evident if the sum of the funds to the environment is compared to those for the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of Transport that in 2011 will suffer a small drop from €6,821 million to €6,654 million in 2011 and 6,6640 in 2013 (the 2010 budget was €6,991 million).

The only field that will not see any cuts is that of defence. “Its budget from 2007 to 2013 will see a maximum drop of 4 per cent”, underlines the WWF, “ moreover, the provisional 2011 to 2013 budget will reinstitute the lost funds.”

In fact the 2008 budget of the ministry [of defence]was €21,132 million, this year it was €20,364, with a prospective to grow to 21,366 in 2013.” In the general economic context, conclude these environmentalists, “given the cuts to each sector, one can come to his or her own conclusions.”

Clash Prestigiacomo-Tremonti

The situation has been heating up for months and more than one minister has signalled their discontent with the Treasuries decision made a few months ago. Last week the show, in the middle of the Council of Ministers, was not yet another dance around the numbers but a sign of discontent within the majority, constrained to pay the bills with this limited financial assistance.

The clash over the cuts exploded thanks to Stefania Prestigiacomo, at the helm of the department most afflicted by the cuts. The Minister of the Environment asked for the billion Euros allocated by the CIPE a year ago to affront an issue concerning groundwater in Italy but still blocked. “We are faced with a continuing national emergency and I can’t use this money,” says the local authority. And to the response “I’ll explain it to you outside,” came the explosion: “don’t be a fool, were not in a school yard”. Minister of Economy and Finance Giulio Tremonti made threats of forced resignation, the situation appeared to be calmed with the mediation of President Silvio Berlusconi.