Tajani against Salvini: “Taxes on windfall profits smack of the USSR. The government must stay out of the banking game”

"I am strongly opposed to the tax on windfall profits; it smacks of the Soviet Union." These were the words of Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani upon his arrival at the Rimini Meeting, regarding the tax on windfall profits for banks. The statements by the centre-right Deputy Prime Minister mark an escalation in a rift within the government, given that the main proponent within the centre-right for introducing the tax on banks is the other Deputy Prime Minister, the Green Party’s Matteo Salvini.

“I am opposed to any suggestion of extra profit or taxes. When I hear the word ‘taxes’, I break out in hives,” said the secretary of Forza Italia. He continued: “I believe we can also work by discussing and engaging with the industrial sector, particularly in the hydrocarbons sector. There must be an agreed dialogue during these difficult times, including from companies in the sector. But I don’t want to hear the term ‘extra profit’ – it smacks of the Soviet Union to me.”

The row is all about the banks. Tajani, in fact, responding to a question from Matteo Salvini on the banking sector, explained: “It is the market that is sovereign and must decide what is to be done. It is not up to the government, nor is it up to politicians to meddle in the banking sector. Politicians must lay down the rules, ensure that the rules are followed, and that is all.” Yesterday, the Lega secretary, also speaking from the stage at the Meeting, had said: “Breaking up Monte dei Paschi would be a crime.” The Foreign Minister’s response is based on the premise that he and Forza Italia are “in favour of the free market”. And so: “We don’t need party-affiliated banks. I’m not interested in having a Forza Italia bank, but in having an efficient banking system.”

Tajani then emphasised the importance of local banks, “which are the ones that help four million small and medium-sized enterprises and help households access credit”, but also the need “for a banking system that includes large banks capable of supporting major international transactions – in other words, a financial system that can also help with the internationalisation of our business sector”. The aim – concludes the Deputy Prime Minister – is to build “a system; it is not for politicians to decide who should do what and what they should do”.

Lega Senator Claudio Borghi also commented on Tajani’s remarks, sharing our article: “I would remind Tajani that excise duties are also taxes, even if the name is spelled differently: the choice is whether citizens should pay them or a sector which, thanks to those very citizens, has made 200 billion in profits in just a few years. The alternative is to tear up the Stability Pact drawn up by Tajani’s party colleague, Ms Ursula von der Leyen, and run a larger deficit.”

The senator continues: “That’s fine by us too. The choice is simple: either we run up a bigger deficit and tell the EU rules that Tajani loves so much to go to hell, or we tax citizens through excise duties, or we tax the banks’ enormous and anomalous profits.” And then, Borghi concludes: “For the League, the only thing that’s unacceptable is taxing citizens; the other two options are fine. If others have different priorities, it’s only right to know this clearly.” 

Forza Italia’s national spokesperson, Raffele Nevi, responded to Borghi: “Borghi can sleep soundly,” he said. “As long as we are here, as our secretary Tajani has repeatedly stated, there will never be any taxes on anyone,” he explained to Adnkronos. "Taxes," he continued, "always cause problems and weaken citizens and businesses; overall, they prevent the country from growing. We will certainly never accept wealth taxes, nor will we tax anyone following the Spanish example. That is the model Schlein follows."

He continues: "We are proposing a different model based on dialogue," continues the Forza Italia representative. “By engaging in constructive dialogue and prioritising the national interest, we can secure far more substantial resources from those willing to contribute than we would by imposing taxes which, as has already happened under left-wing governments, have only led to capital flight and legal disputes,” he concludes.

"Does the League really think that any new tax imposed on banks will not affect account holders? It strikes us as demagogic naivety." So said Enrico Costa, leader of the Forza Italia MPs. “The reality is that one tax leads to another. And our moral, political and economic imperative is that the tax burden on citizens and businesses must decrease rather than increase; that we must start thinking about the opportunities to be created, the avenues to be opened up, and the resources to be freed up, rather than invoking wealth taxes of any kind. So let our friends in the Lega be in no doubt: we will always oppose new taxes and we will always challenge the ‘Soviet’-style concept of ‘extra profit’. Tajani is absolutely right,” he concluded.