Italy’s Renzi ‘hungry’ for change in Europe

During a speech at the Foreign Press Association in Rome on 22 February 2016, Italy's prime minister Matteo Renzi reaffirmed his intention to push for economic policy change on a European level and highlighted Italy's essential role on the change.

Mr Renzi stated that 'either Europe changes its economic policies, its approach to immigration, the way in which it creates the idea of community, or Europe risks reducing to shreds the biggest political operation ever realised'.

On the same day, media sources had access to a report prepared by the Italian finance minister in which he defends that a common European Union policy to manage external borders and cope with the refugee crisis should be funded with common resources, including through the issuance of EU bonds.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: EU’s founding members seek ‘more Europe’, even if it is smaller http://www.europeansources.info/record/eus-founding-members-seek-more-europe-even-if-it-is-smaller/

ESO: Background information: Italy's Renzi criticizes Franco-German dominance in EU http://www.europeansources.info/record/italys-renzi-criticizes-franco-german-dominance-in-eu/

EurActiv, 23.02.16: Italy wants EU bonds to fund refugee response www.euractiv.com/section/euro-finance/news/italy-wants-eu-bonds-to-fund-refugee-response/

EUObserver, 22.02.16: Italy presents anti-austerity roadmap https://euobserver.com/economic/132396

Politico, 23.02.16: Renzi wants Italy’s Alcatraz to be school for Eurocrats http://www.politico.eu/article/renzi-wants-italys-alcatraz-to-be-school-for-eurocrats-santo-stefano/

Politico, 22.02.16: Matteo Renzi’s naughty inner child http://www.politico.eu/article/matteo-renzi-european-ambitions-italy-news/

Politico, 22.02.16: Italy wants EU to spend more, Germany won’t like it http://www.politico.eu/article/italy-renzi-wants-eu-spend-more-boost-growth-economy-stimulus/

Blog: Open Europe, 23.02.16: New Italian document highlights growing demand for further EU reform http://openeurope.org.uk/today/blog/new-italian-document-highlights-growing-demand-for-further-eu-reform/

Italy: Ministry of Economics and Finance: A Shared European Policy Strategy for Growth, Jobs, and Stability, February 2016 http://www.governo.it/sites/governo.it/files/ASharedPolicyStrategy_20160222.pdf

The Local.it, 22.02.16: Italy's Renzi 'hungry' for change in Europe http://www.thelocal.it/20160222/italys-renzi-hungry-for-change-in-europe

---