Closure harms economy, our populists (3)

(ANSA) - Rome, March 31 - Ex-premier Matteo Renzi said Friday on Facebook that "for months the Salvinis and Grillos lectures us, on talk shows and in newspapers: copy Trump, the future is protectionism, the open society only hurts. "All it took was a report in American newspapers to silence all the Italian protectionists and drive home that the theoreticians of closure hurt Italy, really hurt it", referring to tariffs reportedly threatened by United States President Donald Trump. Renzi said "those who scare monger about the future get into the news. But those who make plans for the future are making policy. This is the difference between us and the populists". Renzi, the former leader of the ruling centre-left Democratic Party, was referring to Matteo Salvini, the leader of the anti-immigrant, anti-euro Northern League, and Beppe Grillo, the leader of the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement. He was also referring to US press reports that Trump is thinking of imposing punitive tariffs on a range of EU goods including Vespa scooters and San Pellegrino mineral water as a tit-for-tat measure against an EU ban on hormone-boosted beef. Renzi went on to say that it was important to "protect people" but exports were good for Italy. He also said that Italy must be a "protagonist" of the open society, accompanied by a "less bureaucratic" EU.