Border-workers: Rome, transfer immediately money to the communes

“Money, is there. We have already paid Rome this morning.”   Mr. Giampiero Gianella, chancellor in Canton Ticino, is among the public and he answers seated to Mr. Pietro Roncoroni, president of Associazione dei comuni di frontiera ( Association of communes on the border)  and  the mayor of  Lavena Ponte Tresa, who is speaking at the  conference about the  rebates of border-workers with the regional representative  of Lombardia Mr. Roberto Formigoni. “ Well – continues seraphic Mr.Roncoroni –  now Monti’s Government  must guarantee that communes will have money  in December 2012.” 

The “fight” with the Canton Ticino in order to have 23 million euro of residual rebates, which were blocked by Berna until yesterday, now the Italian border is open. When will that money come to the commune? This is the true question that is in the heads of a lot of mayors who are at  Ville Ponti. On the speakers’ table , together with the mayor of Varese, Mr. Attilio Fontana, regional councillors Raffaele Cattaneo and Luciana Ruffinelli, and the president of the Province of Como Mr. Leonardo Carioni, is a document which will be brought to Rome in delegation in order to deal to the Government some questions of fiscal and financial order. “We ask” said Mr. Formigoni “that a law will be applied, not taxes. We need another 20 million  euro in a permanent way  with a specific aim to avoid the tax evasion about the petrol.”

At Ville Ponti  there is an air of big political brotherhood, as if the beatings in the recently elections don’t leave any sign. Mr. Stefano Tosi, regional representative of the Democratic Party, takes the floor to remark “the unitary action”  and the need to “recover the reciprocal respect  between the two countries.”

Furthermore one hundred mayors in the room, who come from Valchiavenna, to arouse some “hot” questions : the  safety shock absorbers  ( not existing for border-workers), the  “wage discriminations ” between Swiss and Italian people, the escape of Italian entrepreneurs over the border where they find better conditions for their firms above all in  Vallese. True and honest demands , that Mr.Formigoni doesn’t let out . “ Among the demands that we ask to Mr.Monti”  says the president of the region of Lombardy ” there will be also that to continue, on the occasion of the meetings already planned between governments  of the two countries , a constructive dialogue  with Switzerland to give a complete implementation to the fiscal agreement , transferring the money to communes in the end of the year. In addition, we will ask to the Government to face also the problems about this meeting.”

Fontana brushes up an old joke, dedicating to his workmates in room: “ also the mayors like the ants sometimes get pissed. In this case the good sense was used, today is not easy to find it around.” Mr. Cattaneo looks at  Gianella seated in the first line and he names him more times , as he would to say that this dialogue exists since time but the problems are others, for example the notorious  black-list of the countries considered tax havens where also Switzerland is there. “ Some positions of the Government” says the regional representative to facilities “we don’t  share them. One cannot treat Switzerland like the  Cayman Islands».