Tourism drags income down. The most affected city, Florence is fourth
by Lisa Ciardi
Fourth in the ranking among the Italian cities most affected by the collapse in incomes linked to the pandemic. This is what emerges from the data on the 2021 Irpef returns (therefore on 2020 income) published in recent days by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Accessible to all, this “photograph” contains complete information on gross incomes in the various municipalities: how many taxpayers are there, how many people in different groups, income from employment or from ownership of buildings and pensions. Thus it emerges that the total income declared in Italy (865.1 billion euros), negatively from the pandemic and the lockdowns, but offset by the government’s support measures, fell in 2020 by 19.4 billion compared to the previous year, while the average total income fell by 1.1% to € 21,570.
Among the most affected, there are some cities of art, with Venice clearly in first place (-4.36%) and Florence in fourth (-1.98%). In the middle, another Tuscan city, Prato, in second position (-2.77%), and then Como (-2.71% in third).
“These are results that were largely predictable – explains the director of the Regional Institute of Economic Planning of Tuscany (Irpet), Nicola Sciclone – given that the recession linked to the 2020 pandemic has affected above all the engines of development and that the The lockdown has significantly damaged tourism. First we had a freeze on supply, with closures, then a contraction in demand and, as a consequence of both phenomena, a heavier relapse precisely in the territories that were previously stronger “.
In practice, those who were facing a more dynamic phase suffered the most damage. “Obviously in the cities of art the phenomenon has been even more marked – he continues – given the long period of stop of tourism, in particular the international one”. But it wasn’t just this that damaged Florence. “In cities with a greater capacity for attraction, other phenomena have also been created – continues the director of Irpet – I am thinking for example of the stop faced by catering activities specialized in workers’ lunches or in any case to those services to the daily life of the cities or related to arrival of commuters and students. Entire sectors have stopped or have registered significant reductions “.
Leaving 2020 behind us, last year therefore showed the first signs of recovery, unfortunately held back by the rises and the situation in Ukraine. “After a positive rebound – continues the director of Irpet – there has been a new slowdown, linked to the increase in costs and the conflict. At this point, the time of exposure to adverse events will matter a lot: the duration of the war and In any case, when the 2021 income tax returns arrive, we will see a greater recovery in stronger realities, able to exploit the restart more intensively “.