Italy's new government is planning a broad, swift attack on the vested interests in Italian society, according to a junior minister.
Antonio Catricalà, a junior minister in Mario Monti's "technocratic" government, which took office last month, said he and the prime minister had been working on a decree law to sweep aside monopolies, restrictive practices and exclusive accords.
"It will be approved by the 20th of this month," he added.
Italy's decree laws are intended for situations of extreme urgency or necessity. They come into force immediately but have to be approved by parliament within 60 days if they are to remain in effect.
In this case, approval is far from assured, as many of the vested interests under attack are well represented on the benches in parliament.
The Monti government appears to be heading for a decisive battle, similar to that between Margaret Thatcher and the miners in 1980s Britain – but on two fronts, as it also faces a showdown with the trade unions over proposals for employment law reform.
The first signs of resistance came hours after Catricalà's appearance on a late-night TV chatshow.
Taxi drivers, who fear they could be targeted, staged a wildcat strike at Linate airport, in Milan.
The minister did not go into detail, but the liberalising measures he signalled would have profound effects, not just on the economy but on the shape and texture of Italian society.
The government has already told regional governments to relax shopping hours, dealing a big blow to Italy's myriad family-owned retail outlets.
Catricalà said the administration now had its sights trained on exclusive agreements between oil companies and petrol stations, arrangements restricting the number of chemists and notaries, and the virtual monopoly enjoyed by the state-owned railway company, Trenitalia.
He said the decree would also affect banks and insurance companies. But he did not specify how.
Catricalà also revealed the government had ruled out privatising one or more channels belonging to the state-owned RAI TV and radio network.
But, in the anglicised jargon beloved of Monti's technocrats, he promised that they would intervene to secure a degree of efficientamento.
In the eight years they were in power Silvio Berlusconi and his followers established a formidable ascendancy over RAI.
Fears the new government could erode their media clout have caused disquiet in Berlusconi's party, the Freedom People.
guardian.co.uk
Antonio Catricalà, a junior minister in Mario Monti's "technocratic" government, which took office last month, said he and the prime minister had been working on a decree law to sweep aside monopolies, restrictive practices and exclusive accords.
"It will be approved by the 20th of this month," he added.
Italy's decree laws are intended for situations of extreme urgency or necessity. They come into force immediately but have to be approved by parliament within 60 days if they are to remain in effect.
In this case, approval is far from assured, as many of the vested interests under attack are well represented on the benches in parliament.
The Monti government appears to be heading for a decisive battle, similar to that between Margaret Thatcher and the miners in 1980s Britain – but on two fronts, as it also faces a showdown with the trade unions over proposals for employment law reform.
The first signs of resistance came hours after Catricalà's appearance on a late-night TV chatshow.
Taxi drivers, who fear they could be targeted, staged a wildcat strike at Linate airport, in Milan.
The minister did not go into detail, but the liberalising measures he signalled would have profound effects, not just on the economy but on the shape and texture of Italian society.
The government has already told regional governments to relax shopping hours, dealing a big blow to Italy's myriad family-owned retail outlets.
Catricalà said the administration now had its sights trained on exclusive agreements between oil companies and petrol stations, arrangements restricting the number of chemists and notaries, and the virtual monopoly enjoyed by the state-owned railway company, Trenitalia.
He said the decree would also affect banks and insurance companies. But he did not specify how.
Catricalà also revealed the government had ruled out privatising one or more channels belonging to the state-owned RAI TV and radio network.
But, in the anglicised jargon beloved of Monti's technocrats, he promised that they would intervene to secure a degree of efficientamento.
In the eight years they were in power Silvio Berlusconi and his followers established a formidable ascendancy over RAI.
Fears the new government could erode their media clout have caused disquiet in Berlusconi's party, the Freedom People.
guardian.co.uk
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