Life expectancy at birth in Italy continues to increase, but the differences between North and South remain wide. ISTAT highlights this in today's hearing on the status of implementation and prospects of fiscal federalism. From 2004 to 2024, average life expectancy increased from 80.7 to 83.4 years, with a more pronounced increase for men (from 77.9 to 81.4 years) than for women (from 83.6 to 85.5). In 2024, the autonomous provinces of Trento and Bolzano recorded the highest values (84.7 and 84.6 years), while Campania (81.7) and Sicily (82.1) were at the bottom. Calabria, which was in line with the national average 20 years ago, now has a 1.1-year disadvantage. Even wider is the gap for Sicily, which went from -0.6 to -1.3 years behind the Italian average. The gap is also reflected in annual gains in life expectancy: for men, it ranges from 2.5 months per year in the province of Trento to 1.2 in Sicily; for women, Lazio leads with 1.4 months per year, while Marche and Calabria show the smallest progress. ISTAT reports that the gaps are accentuated by the uneven supply of social welfare services. In the South, per capita spending on territorial welfare is just 78 euros, about half the national average (150 euros). The Islands stand at 144 euros, the Center at 165, the Northwest at 162 and the Northeast reaches 207 euros.