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INDUSTRY Italy

Industry and unions ready for war over tax credit

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Renewing the tax credit measures is "a matter of life and death” according to the very worried entertainment industry umbrella organization ANICA. They met today with national unions SLC-CGIL, FISTel-CISL and UILCOM-UIL to discuss possible protest actions if the council of government ministers that is meeting next Wednesday does not pass the three-year renewal of the €240m tax credit.

Although it is not official, there is talk of a possible general strike, of closing down film and television sets or something more creative, such as a blitz or sit-in during the upcoming Rome Film Festival.

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The signs are not promising, however. In late July, Minister of Culture Sandro Bondi met with ANICA representatives and promised to renew the tax credit and tax shelter laws, even showing them a legislative measure for direct state economic support of first and second films, shorts and documentaries. But Bondi has been pushed aside by Minister of Economy Giulio Tremonti, who said no to a recovery of €150m for the FUS (entertainment industry fund), which risks dropping to €277m in 2011. Last Thursday, Tremonti allegedly responded to Bondi’s requests with the flippant remark, "People don’t eat culture".

“The situation is deteriorating day by day,” said ANICA president Paolo Ferrari at an emergency press conference. "We are ready to fight to the end”. However, there may yet be effective mediation carried out by ANICA Vice President Giampaolo Letta, managing director of Medusa, the Berlusconi family’s production and distribution company.

Italy’s film tax credit measures have been operative since about a year ago and have helped compensate for the sweeping budget cuts made to FUS. According to an evaluation by the General Direction for Cinema, the €80m invested annually by the state could produce up to 3.25 times their investment value, with subsequent greater revenue for the Treasury and job creation.

“We must prevent this from being thwarted. The tax credit is working well everywhere,” says independent producer Andrea Occhipinti. "In the state of Michigan, it even compensated for the loss of jobs resulting from the delocalization of the automobile industry".

The next meeting between ANICA and the unions is set for October 13, in the hopes of “closing the matter in as little time as possible,” explained Ferrari.

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(Translated from Italian)

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