Commission not opening procedure

(ANSA) - Brussels, December 19 - The European Commission has decided not to open an infringement procedure against Italy for excessive debt, EU sources said on Wednesday.
    European Commissioners on Wednesday examined a "technical" agreement reached between Rome and Brussels late on Tuesday on Italy's budget for 2019. The Commission rejected the government's initial draft budget plan, which saw Italy running a deficit of 2.4% of GDP next year to finance key pledges and boost sluggish growth, saying it breached EU rules. Premier Giuseppe Conte's League-5-Star Movement (M5S) government proposed bring the deficit down to 2.04% to stop the EU opening an infringement procedure. The government had said it is not willing to drop its two key pledges, the 'citizenship wage' basic income for job seekers and the 'quota 100' pension reform that will bring down the retirement age for many people. Conte is set to report to the Senate at 13:00 after the breakthrough.