European Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni says there have been no negotiations on PNRR funds. And that an algorithm decided how the money was distributed. Which was based on the number of victims of Covid-19 and the damage caused to the economy by the pandemic crisis. Gentiloni recounts what happened and downplays the role of Giuseppe Conte, then prime minister, in a book by Paolo Valentino, journalist of Corriere della Seratitled In the veins of Brussels. Stories and secrets of the capital of Europe. Negotiation only took place on non-refundable money. Countries like Holland would not have wanted it. “Issuing a common debt amounting to 800 billion without devoting a single euro to joint projects was a missed opportunity. All this money was distributed to different countries based on an algorithm, while it is clear that common European funding must first and foremost be intended for common projects,” explains Gentiloni.
Funding quotas
The commissioner explains that the funding quotas allocated to different countries “were not negotiated by the heads of government. They come from an algorithm which was, among other things, designed and defined by two general directors (both Dutch). There is an Italian rhetoric about the fact that we made a lot of money. This is not true. Italy is the seventh country in terms of the ratio of money received to GDP. There are others who, in relative terms, brought in much more, from Spain to Croatia. Always thanks to the algorithm.” But according to Gentiloni, he has no other choice than to contract a common debt “to finance the European common goods”. This does not mean extending the current Next Generation EU, but using the same method. However, if this is not also accompanied by concrete measures towards a common European treasure, it risks proving incomplete.
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