ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s government asked on Thursday for the lower house of parliament to hold a confidence vote on the 2023 budget to speed up its approval and ensure the package becomes law by the end of this year.
Deputies will vote on Friday, allowing the complex bill to pass to the upper house Senate next week for its green light.
If discussions drag on and the budget is not passed by Dec. 31, limits on the government’s monthly spending will kick in, limiting new discretionary measures.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s first budget drives up next year’s deficit to 4.5% of gross domestic product from 3.4% forecast in September, as it allocates over 21 billion euros ($22.33 billion) in tax breaks and bonuses to help firms and households cope with the energy crisis.
Among numerous other measures, the bill offers fiscal incentives to encourage hiring on open ended contracts and moves to phase out a poverty relief scheme for the unemployed.
Opposition parties have accused the ruling coalition of giving parliament insufficient time to review the budget. The government has said it had no alternative because it only took office in late October, drastically curtailing the period normally used to draw up and debate the package.
($1 = 0.9404 euros)
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Gavin Jones)