Premier Matteo Renzi's policies
are hard on workers and soft on tax dodgers, former Democratic
Party (PD) chief Pier Luigi Bersani said Thursday.
"We're doing it the American way as far as workers and the
Italian way as far as tax evasion," Bersani, a former premier
and a staunch critic of PD colleague Renzi, told LA7 private
broadcaster L'Aria Che Tira economic news program.
Bersani resigned as premier after he failed to create a
coalition government following February 2013's inconclusive
general election.
He has been an outspoken critic of Renzi's Jobs Act, which
he says penalizes workers by removing key protections while
failing to combat Italy's rising unemployment rate.
He also blasted the premier over a controversial tax
measure approved by cabinet December 24, which he says basically
allows the wealthiest to cheat the tax man the most.
The controversial measure, called Article 19-bis and
promptly dubbed by pundits as a Save-Berlusconi clause, would
depenalize tax evasion when the evaded sum does not exceed 3% of
declared income.
The clause caused an uproar because it raised suspicions
that former center-right premier Silvio Berlusconi could use it
to avoid the consequences of a 2013 tax-fraud conviction and
subsequent ban from public office.
"The clause says if you declare one million euros, you can
dodge up to 30,000 euros, including by issuing false invoices,"
Bersani said.
"With this 3% (clause), Renzi has sent a message to a
certain part of Italy," he went on. "In this country, being soft
on the tax issue is like giving an alcoholic a drink - if we
don't straighten this out, we will never have money for
investments".
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