Among the measures of the new decree is the hard line on evictions. Over 20 thousand apartments have been stolen from those who are entitled to them.
The cover of this issue of Panorama is dedicated to Giorgia Meloniwhich announced in recent days a plan to build 100 thousand houses. Part of these accommodations, as the Prime Minister explains, will be created thanks to a public investment in which he will also participate Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. Another will be financed by private companies, also with the participation of foreign funds, with the aim of making housing available to families and students at controlled prices. The government’s project is undoubtedly ambitious, because in Italy there has been no talk of low-cost housing for many years.
In the history of the Republic, the Fanfani plan (named after the then Minister of Labour, a leading exponent of the Christian Democrats) with which housing was provided to millions of Italians after the war, remains an extraordinary example. Between 1949 and 1963, using contributions paid by the State, companies and workers, 350 thousand homes were built and not only was a war-torn country rebuilt, but the operation became an incredible driving force for development which contributed to the “economic miracle”, giving work to hundreds of thousands of workers. I don’t know if Meloni’s Housing Plan will do the same: I hope so, also because housing prices have become impossible for many young couples to afford.
However, in addition to recognizing that for the first time in a long time we are talking about social housing again, it did not escape my notice that among the measures of Palazzo Chigi there is one that aims to make the evictions of occupied houses more effective and faster. With the excuse that there is a lack of housing in Italy, there are those who, supported by social centres, trade unions and left-wing organisations, take possession of public buildings, but not only, without having the right. In a normal country, the abuse should last less than twenty-four hours but, in our country, it takes months, if not years, before intervening and putting an end to a crime. Result? Whoever forces the door of a home, taking the apartment away from others who, perhaps, would have the right to occupy it, not only risks nothing, but has the possibility of remaining undisturbed for a long time, and without paying, in a room that is not his. Sometimes it even happens that, to make him vacate the house he doesn’t owe, another one is offered to him. In practice, arrogance and abuse win. Meloni says that with the new measures adopted by the executive this story will end and here too we hope so.
Giorgia Meloni’s housing plan and the challenge of public housing
However, the whining has already begun from social centers and activists, who say that in this way poor families will end up on the sidewalk. In reality, the families who truly live in poverty are those who patiently wait for the housing to which they are entitled, while others obtain it without having the right and for free. According to some research, in our country there are more than 20 thousand apartments “stolen”, that is, occupied by force. But the even more worrying aspect is that the bodies that manage public housing report arrears that have reached 3.2 billion. That is, not only do you occupy the house, but you don’t pay for it. Although the rent ranges from 33 to 130 euros per month, thousands of people live on free.
The welfare imbalance and the accounts of the Italian system
Obviously I already know the objection: they don’t pay a single euro, not even the 33 euros in rent, because they are poor and have no money. But are we sure this is the case? Alberto Brambillaan expert in pensions and public accounts, recently calculated how many Italians live at the expense of the community, that is, without paying taxes and contributing to supporting health services: 7.2 million. And, again Professor Brambilla, estimated that in 2025 there were 32 million citizens who requested assistance from the State, with various aids or integrations. In practice, only a minority, i.e. one in four Italians, bears the weight of the system, while the others play smart. Obviously, I don’t mean to say that the poor don’t exist, nor to argue that anyone who doesn’t pay rent on public housing is necessarily a profiteer. Of course, when I see that there are families who get by on the subsidy, receive help to pay the bills and even rent the accommodation in which they live, and don’t pay a single euro in taxes, I wonder what they do with their lives. Brambilla says that, in other countries, if you don’t declare an income, around the age of thirty someone knocks on your door and asks you to account for it. Instead, here, not only does no one tell you anything, but there are even those who argue that you are right to occupy the house and not pay: it is the State that must give you an income and even a roof over your head.
Therefore, I don’t know if Giorgia Meloni’s decree will serve to evict the profiteers who leave the bill to be paid by honest taxpayers. But regardless of the result, so be it. It’s about time.
