Because Butti’s attacks on Colao on the Pnrr are far from reality

Alessio Buttiundersecretary at Palazzo Chigi with responsibility for Innovation, attacked brutally Victor ColaoMinister of Innovation in the Draghi government. But the allegations seem very far from reality. Speaking at the Asstel Forum, Butti defined the situation left by the Draghi government “embarrassing to say the least” and “with macroscopic delays”. For the exponent of FdI the EU Commission “has expressed concern to the outgoing government, which declared that it could not achieve the previously indicated objectives”. But the claim is unsubstantiated. Or rather, it finds the opposite sign. Because the Commission received the final clarifications in September and it does not appear that it has expressed any concern, so much so that a few days ago it released the second tranche of 21 billion precisely because Italy has achieved all 45 goals and objectives.

Butti then stated that for the Italy plan at 1 Giga“Minister Colao’s goal of covering with additional 1 Giga networks 8.5 million residential units pleaded wrong” because in the progress report sent to the Commission in October “Italy communicated that, following a detailed mapping, the areas that by 2026 turn out to be a market failure affecting only 6.87 million of residential units”. But the estimate of 8.5 million was made in April, in the initial draft of the Pnrr, before the request to Brussels for authorization for state aid. After, as required by law, the plan was subjected to a check that it has crossed the hedging investments planned by private operators. And the mapping showed that the quantity of street numbers (not residential units) for which interventions are authorized, i.e. market failure, is 6.87 million. But that does not mean that coverage will be lower than 1.63m. It simply means that only these house numbers can be covered through public funding. However, the fact remains that by 2026 the coverage target is 8.5 millionsumming up the private investment plans.

The Meloni government will therefore have to monitor that all public and private investments are made. “But what worries me the most are the delays that we will surely have”, Butti said. The undersecretary’s concerns are legitimate, but the fact is supervising compliance with the times of the Pnrr is exactly his task. In short, avoiding delays is what remains for him to do after Colao has achieved the European objectives, assigned the tenders and received the money from Brussels.

Butti makes a similar objection for the Italy 5G plan: “The previous government is leaving us an embarrassing situation to say the least.” Because the objective declared in the Pnrr was to cover at least 15,000 km² of market failure areas with the 5G network, while in the final report Colao “stated that the market failure areas will be 440 km² and no longer 15,000 km² as foreseen by the target”. Again: the estimate of 15,000 km² was made at an early stage, in April, almost in the dark. Subsequently, for the first time in Italy, one was made mobile market mapping and it emerged that most areas would be covered by private plans. This means that too the Pnrr target for 5G will be achieved by adding public and private investments. In practice, less public money will be spent for the same result.

On the other hand, just a few days ago, the Minister of Economy Giancarlo Giorgetti he expressed “satisfaction” for the arrival of the 21 billion tranche from Brussels, largely due to broadband and 5G projects: “It is the concrete demonstration that we have taken all the necessary steps – said Giorgetti – and we will continue to monitor and act with the same determination and seriousness up to the final goal”. Not exactly the “embarrassing situation” described by Butti. But in the Meloni government do they talk to each other?