COVID-19 e incentivi pubblici alle imprese turistiche italiane: un’analisi preliminare

Tourism is the sector most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. This research aims to carry out a preliminary analysis of the impact of the Italian government's funding policies in favour of operators in the tourism sector, to assess which types of businesses and which geographical areas have benefited the most. This work investigates, primarily, the measures implemented by the Government with a series of decrees containing measures to support the tourism activities hard hit by the pandemic, from the “holiday bonus” addressed to families and accommodation facilities, to the resources for travel agencies and tour operator, to the non-repayable grant in favour of commercial establishments open to the public in the historic centres of the cities of art with a high tourist vocation, to the investments of the "Great Cultural Heritage Projects" Strategic Plan launched by the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities and for Tourism. In particular, according to the data of the Revenue Agency reported by the MIBACT available at the end of July 2020, there are more than one million holiday bonuses obtained through the “IO App” which represent an economic value of 450 million euros, with over 140 thousand families who have already spent the bonuses in about 10 thousand structures, thus injecting over 60 million euros into the tourism sector. The regions where expenditure is most concentrated are Emilia-Romagna, Apulia and Tuscany which, together, account for more than a third of the bonuses paid. Travel agencies and tour operators have also been particularly affected by the measures to contain the pandemic. Non-repayable grants were allocated to them and not. Subsequently, the non-repayable grants intended for partial refreshment are analysed for those who carry out sales of goods or services to the public who have suffered a decrease in turnover of at least one third compared to 2019, due to the absence of international tourism in 29 cities of art with a high tourist vocation. Furthermore, to confirm that culture and tourism are an inseparable pair, the eleven projects and construction sites spread throughout the national territory that will contribute to the birth of new cultural realities and the consolidation of others will be considered. The present research aims at an initial overall assessment of the relationship between the Italian government's subsidy system to the tourism sector and the consequent economic and social effects.