"Overall, this first measure provides an allocation of more than 2 billion euros for the areas affected by the flood". These were the words of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at a press conference after the Council of Ministers on Emilia-Romagna. Meloni announced yesterday the government's first moves to deal with the damage from the flood that hit Emilia Romagna. "I think I can say," Meloni claimed, "that in the current situation in Italy, finding 2 billion euros in a few days is not an easy task, and so I think the entire government should be given credit for having dedicated itself to this emergency with the greatest possible concentration, availability and operativeness. Clearly we know that we are talking about emergency, that there will be a reconstruction phase on which we are not yet able to quantify the overall needs and damages, but I can say that I don't know if we had ever seen 2 billion euros in the past emergency interventions". Specifically, the Council of Ministers adopted a Civil Protection ordinance extending the state of emergency to all municipalities affected by the second wave of the flooding and not already included in the first, subject to extending the state of emergency once the preliminary investigation is completed also to the municipalities that were affected in the Marche and Tuscany regions, which, however, need another path and a decree law with the first urgent interventions. Among the various measures, there is the redundancy fund in exception for all employees for up to 90 days, a measure covered up to 580 million euros. And there is also a one-time payment of up to 3,000 euros for self-employed workers forced to stop working, with coverage of up to 300 million euros. Mortgages and tax and social security payments will be deferred. A fund for educational continuity at every level has also been established. There will be strengthened access to the guarantee fund for small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as a budget for restoring health care.
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