The Italian parliament has found a link between agriculture and pension funds, appointing Lucio Francario, a professor in civil law and specialist in agricultural issues, as chairman of the Commissione di vigilanza sui fondi pensione (Covip), the Italian pension funds authority.
Francario has a good record of achievements in his field but, apart from a minor appointment in a regional commission supervising financial salesmen, he has never been involved in any financial matters.
The Italian law on pension funds requires Covip’s members to be qualified and have experience in dealing with pension and financial problems. Only Umberto Bossi’s Lega Nord, now in the opposition, noted the inconsistency and voted against Francarios’s appointment.
The Italian pension fund industry, astonished by the news, has not made any official comments. Privately, more than one expert says that keeping Covip working is not worthwhile, because what was already a very ‘poor’ authority, unable to accomplish its too many goals, has now a very ‘poor’ chairman without the experience needed to rule the country’s pension fund industry.
Maria Teresa Cometto