Frenzied Renzi
Italy switches from economic reform back to politics as usual
IT WAS nice while it lasted. For a few weeks after Italy fell back into yet another recession, politicians concentrated on the economy. Matteo Renzi’s government rushed through a bill on labour-market reforms. There was an expansionary 2015 budget, with cuts in public spending balanced by measures to stimulate demand.
The measures were imperfect but at least the crucial issues for a country stuck with a stagnant economy and vast debts were being debated. Italy’s biggest trade union federation, the CGIL, protested against the employment reform and Mr Renzi’s take-it-or-leave it approach.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline "Frenzied Renzi"
From the November 15th 2014 edition
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