Changing pace and betting on the future. But this time doing it for real. From the stage of the 54th National Convention in Rapallo, the president of the Young Entrepreneurs Maria Anghileri asked for a formal commitment from the government and the parties to transforming Italy into a country that believes in its young people.

Young people who live very different fates in the world - the opening of the report explicitly recalled the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza -, young people who in Italy and Europe are united by a sense of bewilderment for a promise of peace and prosperity that appears increasingly unfulfilled. Faced with this scenario, Anghileri called for a reaction, abdicating the policy of ordinary maintenance and courageously choosing to finally make the EU a pro-business country. How? 'The entry into force of the 28th Unified Regime would really be a revolution for SMEs and start-ups,' the president emphasised, 'which would be able to operate in all 27 EU states with the same business and tax rules. The objective of the Young Entrepreneurs is to stay and make industry in Europe.

The recipe contained in the Draghi and Letta reports needs a different temponot to be a prisoner of the so-called 'reluctant countries' but to take the example of what has already been done with the single currency, adopted today by 20 out of 27 Member States (which will become 21 on 1 January 2026 with Bulgaria's adoption of the euro).

To Italy - and to its political and institutional representatives seated in the audience - President Anghileri reminded them of the country's profoundly industrial DNA, which translates into 626 billion in exports realised through mechanics, metallurgy, fashion, motor vehicles, agri-food, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. But Europe's second largest manufacturer, without strategic vision, risks floating for another 20 years.

An unacceptable prospect for Young Entrepreneurs, who demand three things: 1) a structural lowering of the cost of energy, one of the highest in the world; 2) a lowering of the tax burden, over 41%, which puts us in third place among OECD countries; 3) a lowering of the tax and contribution wedge, currently at 47.1%, a good 12 points higher than the OECD average.

"Italy,' President Anghileri denounced from the stage in Rapallo, 'is breaking the pact between generations and the responsibility is collective.

It could not be otherwise if, speaking about the annual expenditure of public administrations, Anghileri recalls that "resources allocated to expenditure 'for the future' are few compared to those dedicated to maintaining the status quo. Out of more than 1.1 trillion spent by 2023, only 9% is dedicated to education, research and development". Far too little.

This is a short-sighted strategy, which rewards in terms of votes but does not build a future. The proof of this failure lies in a few figures: in the last ten years, Italy has seen 367,000 young people leave (of which 97,000 graduates) and 153,000 companies led by under-35s; without forgetting the approximately two million young people who do not study or work today. Instead, it must be understood that 'Italy needs its young people more than they need her,' he stressed.

In order to stop this haemorrhaging and, at the same time, offer a concrete perspective to the young people living in our country, President Anghileri called for build a real 'Future Chain', which is to double public investment in education, birth rates, innovation and young companies within the next ten years. In the absence of stable services, was Anghileri's warning, 'we will continue to give our competitors employees and new entrepreneurs, who will then build their families elsewhere'. And the increasingly empty cradles that our country records today - in 2024 there will be a further drop to 370,000 children, with a fertility rate of 1.18 children per woman - are destined to translate, one day, into equally empty companies.

Giving young people a voice in the countrytherefore; a recipe that, tailored to the needs of those who do business, means promoting competitiveness and support the growth of companieswith a special focus on those starting from scratch.

There is therefore a need for more suitable banking products that consider potential and not just guarantees, and there is an equal need to support the dimensional growth of companies. "This is our obsession," the president emphasised, strengthened by the fact that as many as six out of ten Young Entrepreneurs aim to create new business branches in the next five years. This path must be accompanied: tax simplifications, for which Anghileri also gave credit to the government, are not enough. More courageous choices are needed on premium IRESeffectively rewarding virtuous entrepreneurs who reinvest profits in the company.

In the introductory report At the two-day event in Rapallo, Anghileri also dedicated space to the topic of training, focusing on a model that brings together humanistic and scientific culture and turn universities, not only Italian but also European, into poles of attraction for girls and boys from all over the world; a goal that could be more attainable today, thanks in part to the restrictive policies adopted by the Trump administration against its most famous universities.

The concluding passages were dedicated to women and the fundamental role they play for Italy, in which President Anghileri recalled how a country's competitiveness is also measured by the services it makes available to families. "Three million women in Italy are missing from work' and, he explained, this is partly due to the commitment to care activities that many of them have in their families: 'No problem when family care is a free choice. But when the choice is forced due to lack of alternatives, it becomes a job with no salary, no contributions and, one day, no pension'. The ambition to build a great Italian dream also passes here.