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Il Financial Times segnala l'eurostilita' dei ministri italiani
THE EURO ARRIVES: Rome trio's thumbs down to europhoria: EUROSCEPTICS: James Blitz on why some Italian ministers are intent on spoiling the euro party
In most of the eurozone, the arrival of
euro notes and coins has been greeted by governments with enthusiasm. The exception is Italy, where senior figures in Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right government make little secret that they see the new currency as an irrelevance and perhaps even a danger to the European economy.Antonio Martino, Italy's eurosceptic defence minister, yesterday spelled out his deep concern. "I hope I'm wrong, but there are big risks that the experience of the
euro will end in failure, given the way it was introduced," said Mr Martino in an interview.Umberto Bossi, firebrand leader of the Northern League and minister for institutional reform, was more blunt. "Personally, I couldn't care less about the
euro, and I don't think it means anything to anybody else either," he said. "This was a decision imposed from on high and the public had no choice in the matter."Giulio Tremonti, finance minister and one of the most powerful figures in government, also distanced himself from
euro euphoria. Asked to comment on the arrival of the euro, he said: "I'm slightly reticent to start walking down a path full of...primates waving banners, faith healers, shamans, miracle makers and bankers."He added: "I find this idea that the
euro will bring peace and end wars particularly odd. Wars end when consumerism triumphs over romanticism."The sour comments of the three ministers contrast sharply with the enthusiasm in Italy for the new currency. Pictures of Italian head of state Carlo Azeglio Ciampi toasting the
euro's arrival have dominated the media, reflecting his pivotal role in ensuring that Italy qualified for the euro."Over and above its economic impact, it (the
euro) is a great sign of peace," President Ciampi, 81, told millions of Italians on Monday night in an annual televised address.However, the comments from Messrs Martino, Bossi and Tremonti are the latest indication of growing hostility among some cabinet members towards further European integration.
Renato Ruggiero, Italy's foreign minister and an apolitical career diplomat, remains the most staunchly pro-European figure in the government. Mr Berlusconi's coalition also contains one pro-European party, the Christian Democrat CCD whose figurehead is Pierferdinando Casini, the president of Italy's lower house of parliament, the chamber of deputies.
However, Mr Martino, one of the few free market liberals on the Italian political stage, has never disguised his objection to fixing the exchange rates of the main European currencies. Mr Bossi and Mr Tremonti, who are politically close, are opposed to what they see as the creation of a European super-state run by unelected technocrats. As Mr Tremonti said this week: "People reject the post-modern and neo-fascist idea that technocracy can be the pursuit of politics by other means."
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