Salvini climbs onto the lorry and halts (not all) the blockades. Meloni’s concerns in the south

The release of 480 million, plus an additional 150 million, with the aim of reaching one billion euros by 2027. The government is thus attempting to quell the protests by lorry drivers in the south. With Salvini stepping down from the bulldozer, climbing into a lorry and convening the Sicilian Hauliers’ Committee in Milan (which, following the meeting, called off the strike announced on the island). The great fear is that the southern regions will spiral out of control. Antonio De Caprio, a Calabrian regional councillor for Forza Italia and a businessman who brought the lorries to a standstill, issued a warning to Il Foglio: “The government must provide answers very quickly. We must not lose sight of the demands of the south.” 

A mix of inducement and warning, combined with moral suasion and a reminder to respect the rules, characterised the meeting in Milan between Salvini and the League’s Deputy Minister for Infrastructure, Edoardo Rixi, and representatives of the Sicilian Road Hauliers’ Committee. The agreement provides for the immediate allocation of the 430 million already ‘earmarked’ until the end of August (to which a further 30 million will be added) in tax credits to tackle high fuel prices, the addition of a further 150 million for September–October, and the prospect of reaching one billion – though only next year. “It’s a first response,” claims Salvini. He announces a second round of talks for 27 October, when phase two will begin, “and we will verify the start of the payments we have committed to today”. The hauliers, following the example of what certain regional groups have already done in recent days, have called off their strike, but in regions such as Puglia and Calabria, for example, the protests continue: “We are still waiting for answers.” This is why Rixi himself states that “we are only partially satisfied, because the measures must be implemented and become fully operational, so that companies can see the government’s commitments”. Although the Deputy Minister also adds that “the protests are justified, but we cannot tolerate indefinite blockades”. These measures will be coordinated by a dedicated “Permanent Committee for Southern Italy”. The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT) is in constant dialogue with the Ministry of the Interior, led by Matteo Piantedosi, precisely because the blockades fall within the remit of public order management. As mentioned, the Sicilian committee, coordinated by Salvatore Bella, eventually lifted the blockade but maintained the “state of agitation”.

Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, too, on the day that farmers’ associations joined the protests – with CIA-Agricoltori Italiani gathering outside Montecitorio – called for the law to be respected: “Blocking lorries disrupts the entire system and calls into question the availability of goods, including pharmaceuticals as well as foodstuffs”. This is the other major front – the protests in the south – unfolding in parallel with the smashed shop windows and the Parisian banlieue-style riots witnessed in Milan last weekend. So much so that even figures from the centre-right have, in recent days, if not gone so far as to ‘incite’ the lorry drivers’ protests, certainly called for the seriousness of the situation to be recognised. “I read that Salvini assured today that relief payments will be made to lorry drivers in the coming days, but we must focus our attention on this issue, because we must not give the impression that we only do so when there are disturbances like those in Milan,” said Roberto Occhiuto, President of Calabria and a member of Forza Italia, on this matter. He has allocated around 15 million to tackle the most pressing emergency in his region. Among those who have found themselves fully supporting the protests against high fuel prices is Antonio De Caprio, a Calabrian regional councillor for Forza Italia and also an entrepreneur in the craft beer sector, who has kept his lorries off the road during these days of protest. “I’ve been visiting the various protest sites and have witnessed first-hand the plight of many small and medium-sized business owners who are experiencing widespread hardship. That’s why we need extremely swift responses, as we’ve tried to do here in Calabria,” he told Il Foglio. “The strike we have supported and are continuing to support is worth more than any future compensation; that is why the situation must be resolved soon. The demands of the South – which, incidentally, is acting in a united and cohesive manner – must be listened to, and we must be prepared to provide answers,” De Caprio adds. Especially in a pre-election year, one might say.