Italy air fare cap in line with EU norms says ministry

ROME. KAZINFORM - Italy's proposed cap on air fares is in line with European Union norms and is not a breach of free-market rules as claimed by European airlines who have asked the European Commission to intervene in the matter, Italy's transport ministry said Wednesday, Kazinform cites ANSA.

«The measures introduced by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy (against the high cost of flights) are fully in line with European directives on the protection of consumers in the face of speculative phenomena, or in any case distortions of the market, such as those reported in recent months by the controlling authorities for some air routes», said ministry sources.

They added that «the ministry has all the elements needed to respond, in a complete manner, to any requests from the European Commission as is customary through its own offices».

Airlines have asked the European Commission to intervene in relation to plans by the Italian government to cap air fares on certain domestic routes, according to an article published by the Financial Times on Tuesday.

In a letter seen by the London newspaper the trade body Airlines for Europe (A4E) has called on Brussels «to clarify with Italy that this intervention impacts the free and deregulated air transport market in Europe».

Last week the government of Premier Giorgia Meloni approved a decree setting a ceiling on the prices of flights to the Italian island regions of Sicily and Sardinia.

However, A4E argues that this could «set a precedent and lead to a domino effect».

Limiting fares would «violate» the rights of companies to '«compete wherever possible, set prices and define services as they see fit», the trade body added.

Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson has already blasted the measure clamping down on the use of algorithms to set flight prices, calling for it to be scrapped.