The Council of Ministers approves a new ten-day discount on diesel: Giorgetti: "A measure worth €125 million"

"A discount on diesel – and diesel only – is expected, amounting to 17 cents in total (including excise duty and VAT), valid until 6 August." This was stated by the Minister for the Economy, Giancarlo Giorgetti, at a press conference following the Council of Ministers meeting, during which a new decree on fuel prices was approved. “The measure amounts to €125 million for the excise duty discount. Part of the funding comes from variable excise duties, but only for the previous month, as we are waiting until early August to use July’s revenue; part comes from antitrust fines; and part from the fund for structural economic policy measures,” explained Giorgetti. “A Council of Ministers meeting is already scheduled for 4 August to assess how the situation is developing, monitoring the international situation and prices to see what action to take after 6 August,” he added. Contrary to what had been leaked prior to the Council of Ministers meeting, “we have not taken any action on tobacco excise duties. It is clear that the situation is evolving day by day. Today, for example, the price of Brent crude is falling; the hope is that this will also translate into a reduction in prices at the pump in a few days’ time,” he said.

“The subsidy for hauliers has been extended until July, and a tax credit is also planned for the agricultural sector, where there is a very specific issue concerning insufficient income, which we intend to address during the conversion process,” explained the Minister for the Economy. 

“International tensions are driving up fuel prices once again and, with them, the cost of everything that travels by road. Faced with this price rise – which we did not cause but must manage – we have decided to take immediate action,” commented Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on social media. “We know this does not solve the problem. But it is a timely and responsible response, taking into account the limited resources we have and an ever-changing international landscape,” she continued. “We are monitoring the situation as it develops day by day, including with regard to the conflict, and we will meet again before the deadline to decide on the next steps. We will do everything we can to ensure that citizens and those who keep the nation running are not left to fend for themselves.”

Ahead of the Council of Ministers meeting, Tommaso Foti, Minister for European Affairs, the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and Cohesion Policy, told Corriere della Sera that the possibility of opting for variable excise duties had been specifically assessed, “given that it takes two months to determine VAT revenue resulting from an increase in fuel costs”. And “introducing special fuel measures via social cards is an idea we are currently working on. We will do whatever else we can, I think in the coming days,” he added, emphasising, however, that “everything must be done with great caution, because we find ourselves in a complicated situation where no one can say what will happen in three days’ time in the Strait of Hormuz”.

Prior to today, the government had already intervened seven times to tackle high fuel prices, allocating around two billion euros for each reduction in fuel excise duties, prompted by the conflict between the United States and Iran. Initially, the total discount was 25 cents per litre for petrol and diesel, and had been gradually reduced to 5.

During the afternoon, the possibility also arose of including an increase in the cost of tobacco products amongst the potential sources of funding currently under consideration to raise funds in support of the fuel decree expected to be discussed by the Council of Ministers. The latest Budget Law introduced a gradual increase in excise duties on tobacco products for the three-year period 2026–2028. Shortly afterwards, it emerged that the proposal would not be discussed at today’s Council meeting, partly due to the opposition expressed by the League and Forza Italia regarding the measure. The idea of adjusting the cost of tobacco products was also immediately criticised by the opposition (“the government is desperate”, said PD Senator Francesco Boccia), which on Friday put forward the following in the joint motion by the PD, M5S and AVS- IV, a request to activate the ‘flexible excise duty’ mechanism, which allows the additional revenue generated from fuel sales during a given period to be used to lower excise duties in the following period.