"The high energy price is the number one problem facing Italy as a whole, businesses and households. But we must not stop looking at the medium term, at the reforms that must be carried out in order to have an efficient and competitive country. The ability of businesses to take a hit is not infinite, and neither is that of citizens. But by acting now, appropriately, we have all the <Energie> to build our future and overcome this very difficult period'. This is how Riccardo Di Stefano, president of the Young Entrepreneurs, presented the 37th conference on Capri, which returns to the island after the pandemic.

"The phase of great uncertainty that the country is going through may represent a moment of crisis or transformation. New energy is needed to restructure its economic and social foundations. A change that necessarily passes through apublic-private alliance on the major issues of welfare, demography, investment in infrastructure, digital and environmental transition"Di Stefano said in an interview in Sole24Ore, calling on the future government to take immediate action on the energy issue from day one of its inauguration. "European intervention would be needed, starting with the cap on gas prices. And a new 'Sure energy' programme. But if Europe does not act and the interests of individual countries prevail, government action becomes unavoidable. We as Young Entrepreneurs have always been strict about controlling public accounts, but in the face of this emergency if a substantial sum is not allocated now, around 40-50 billion, there is a risk of having to pay an even higher price laterin terms of business closures, job losses, and thus a contraction of growth. The necessary resources could be found within a public expenditure of 1000 billion'.

At the same time, one must working on reformsand avoid the risk of sidelining the actions necessary to relaunch Italy. "This absolutely must not happen. There is a need to look ahead,' Di Stefano said, recalling that many urgent issues remain on the table, insufficiently addressed. "I am thinking of the demographic winter: projections indicate a strong ageing of the population. We need to rethink welfare and active policies, putting work at the centre, with a special focus on women. We need to facilitate their entry into the labour market, also with a cultural change, involving men more in the role of parents. Families, those on lower incomes, must be protected. And special attention must also be paid to young people who, together with women, have been the most penalised in these pandemic years'.

On the role of business within the NRP, the Youth leader said: 'Public-private collaboration is crucial in the implementation of the NRPin all its parts. I am thinking of the green transformation: substantial investments are needed, which are more important than ever at this stage; without the leverage of public resources, private individuals cannot do it alone. In digital too, we must do much more, and it must be done together. Moreover, the Plan's resources are also crucial for infrastructure: they must be spent on time and well because there is an absolute need to modernise the country's infrastructure'.

Finally, Di Stefano, as a Sicilian entrepreneur, wished that the Mezzogiorno can become an energy hub, 'because of its position in the Mediterranean and the resources it has, I am also thinking of renewables. The infrastructure game in this area of the country is even more crucial"he concluded.