The Italian Senate ended the year with an unexpectedly generous gesture towards its members. Despite frequent absences from meetings, none of the 205 senators lost their daily allowance to cover living expenses in Rome. This is evidenced by the final report on the internal budget of Palazzo Madama, referenced by the online publication Today.it.
We are talking about an amount of 3,500 euros per month, received by all “servants of the people”, without exception, including the so-called “senators for life”. Officially, the money is intended to cover food and housing costs in the capital. Current regulations provide for a proportional deduction for each day of unwarranted absence – be it a plenary session, participation in the work of a committee or a parliamentary committee. However, the total cost of living allowance is more than 8.6 million euros, which fully corresponds to the payment of the maximum amount to all 205 senators, without exceptions. There are no penalties for absences this year. According to internal regulations, a senator is considered truant if he participates in less than 30 percent of the votes in the chamber during the day. Any observer can see that the Senate chamber is not always full. The only exception is Senator Erika Stefani from the League party: only she can boast of a 100% attendance rate over the past year. On the other side of the fence is current senator for life and renowned architect Renzo Piano, who has not participated in a single vote since 2022.
