Berlusconi Tells Giornale EU Debt-Cut Targets Are Impossible
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said debt-reduction targets required by the European Union are unrealistic and urged tax cuts to boost economic growth, according to an interview with newspaper Il Giornale.
“Italy should reduce its debt by 40 billion euros ($52 billion) to 50 billion euros each year, which is absolutely impossible,” Berlusconi, citing EU rules, told Il Giornale, a newspaper owned by Berlusconi family.
Berlusconi said if he were to lead the next government, he would retract Prime Minister Mario Monti’s property tax on primary residences, according to Giornale.
To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Frye in Rome at afrye@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Hertling at jhertling@bloomberg.net.
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