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
00:24as another judicial intrusion into 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.
00:35Later, the country's Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini adopted a more measured tone,
00:42saying the government would away the court's comments with complete calm and was confident
00:49could respond point by point, having complied with all regulations.
00:51But can Salvini and Meloni really bypass the Court of Auditors?
00:54According to Leila Simone Talani, Professor of International Political Economy at King's College,
00:58the government does have that power.
01:00The very quick answer is that yes, the government can bypass the Court of Accounts.
01:07simply by stating that this is a project in the public interest of Italy, in the superior public interest of the country.
01:14And if they decide in the Council of Ministers that this is the case, which is very likely that this is the case,
01:21which is very likely that they will decide, then they can overcome a Court of Accounts.
01:23Italy will have to wait for the court's full rezoning, expected within 30 days, before deciding its next move.
01:53Thank you very much.
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