Marco Travaglio said fuel discounts have failed to offset rising prices after temporary excise-duty cuts expired. He argued that support for motorists could be funded through energy companies’ windfall profits or defence spending.
The editor of Il Fatto Quotidiano made the remarks on Otto e mezzo, a program on La7. He described the test of government measures as practical rather than political: drivers see the price at the pump and compare it with their previous visit.
ANSA reported that Giorgia Meloni’s government extended fuel-tax relief in stages, with the latest measure running through Oct. 5. Travaglio argued that small discounts lose their effect when retail prices continue to rise.
The journalist also linked higher fuel costs to the Gulf crisis and Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries using Western weapons. That was his assessment of the causes of the price increase. As an alternative, he proposed directing money planned for rearmament toward public support.