Italy’s Stats Agency Threaten Data Blackout After Budget Cuts
Please note that we are not authorised to provide any investment advice. The content on this page is for information purposes only.
Italy’s national statistics body, the ISTAT, may cease publishing data on the economy beginning from next year, reported Reuters on Thursday, after ISTAT’s President Enrico Giovannini threatened to go on strike following the government’s decision to cut more money from the agency’s budget.
Italy’s national statistics body, the ISTAT, may cease publishing data on the economy beginning from next year, reported Reuters on Thursday, after ISTAT’s President Enrico Giovannini threatened to go on strike following the government’s decision to cut more money from the agency’s budget.
According to Giovannini in an interview with La Repubblica daily, the planned budget cuts would almost certainly affect the statistics office’s capabilities, especially as ISTAT’s budget had already been slashed by 29 million euros ($35 million) last year.
“Spending cuts are putting ISTAT at risk. From January onwards we will not issue any statistics,” he said.
[quote]”We will not issue data on inflation, deficit, household income, job data. That will trigger very high EU fines for our country for every day of delay…I do not think the government and the parliament will want to get to that point,” Giovannini added.[/quote]Presently, 70 percent of ISTAT’s output is aimed towards meeting the nation’s obligations with the EU, which has regulations that require member states to continually report economic data.
Related: EU Orders Italy To Refund $471 Million After Discovery Of Mafia-Linked Motorway
Related: Italy’s Financial Turmoil Turns Mafia Into Nation’s Largest Bank
ISTAT also produces up to 300 major releases a year, a 25 percent increase from two years ago, despite their budget being less than half of what is set aside for national statistics in France and one-third of what available in Nordic countries.
If the planned cuts go through, the agency’s budget would drop by a further 3 million euros a year.
[quote]“The demands are increasing, we are producing more, but our human and budgetary resources are falling,” Giovannini lamented.[/quote]The ISTAT president also described the measures as “unsustainable” in the long-term and called for the government to rethink its decision.
As part of their austerity cuts, Prime Minister Mario Monti’s government has unveiled plans to cut public spending by 4.4 billion euros in 2012, 10.6 billion euros in 2013 and over 11 billion euros in 2014. The cuts will be mainly achieved through a planned 10 percent reduction of public administration staff and could be relooked when the government discusses the new budget law in the autumn.
Reuters also claimed that some ISTAT data releases were already being delayed due to a protest by a group of staff members. Furthermore, many ISTAT employees are now on temporary contracts and could lose their jobs without any form of compensation.
Related: Italy Cuts $5.6 Billion From Budget To Avoid Sales Tax Hike
Related: Italian Museum Burns Artwork To Protest Budget Cuts
Related: Italy Forced To Retract “Dog And Cat Tax” Proposal
