00:00Can Italy go against the Court of Auditors and build the world's longest suspension bridge?
00:08Last week, Italy's Court of Auditors rejected the government's plan to build a 13.5 billion euro suspension bridge
00:15connecting Sicily to the region of Calabria, across the Strait of Messina.
00:19After the court delivered its conclusions, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned it as another judicial intrusion
00:25into the powers of the government and parliament.
00:28According to Nicola Lupo, Professor of Constitutional Law at Lewis University,
00:32the government's criticism over the judges is not relevant.
00:35La polemica del governo verso i giudici è un po' forzata.
00:39La Corte dei Conti non agisce come giudice, agisce come organo di controllo del governo.
00:44A caldo del governo, a firma della Presidente del Consiglio, quel comunicato confonde un po', lo fa apposta.
00:50Se la prende con i giudici e con la riforma della giustizia, non c'entra molto.
00:54Later, the country's Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini adopted a more measured tone,
01:01saying the government would away the court's comments with complete calm
01:04and was confident he could respond point by point, having complied with all regulations.
01:09But can Salvini and Meloni really bypass the Court of Auditors?
01:12According to Leila Simone Talani, Professor of International Political Economy at King's College,
01:17the government does have that power.
01:19The very quick answer is that yes, the government can bypass the court of the accounts,
01:24simply by stating that this is a project in the public interest of Italy,
01:31in the superior public interest of the country.
01:34and if they decide in the Council of Ministers that this is the case,
01:37which is very likely that they will decide,
01:39then they can overcome a court of accounts.
01:42Italy will have to wait for the court's full rezoning,
01:45expected within 30 days, before deciding its next move.
Comentários