The Meloni government could set aside the Spid, the single digital identity that allows you to interface with all the services of the Public Administration.
The Meloni government could set aside the Spid, the single digital identity that allows you to interface with all the services of the Public Administration (and not only).
For the moment there is only one declaration of intent, which comes to us through the mouth of Alessio Butti , undersecretary to the presidency of the Council with responsibility for technological innovation, on the occasion of the convention for the tenth anniversary of the founding of the Brothers of Italy (positions then reiterate with a letter to the Courier). Butti explained that the plan would envisage gradually “turning off” the Spid, which would be replaced by the electronic identity card (Cie) in all its functions.
Butti was already known for his skepticism towards the Spid, so much so that in 2020, when he was a deputy, he presented an agenda asking the Government to undertake to implement a plan to create a new identity system managed in via exclusively by the state and not through private suppliers – as is the case now.
Many things have changed since 2020. For example, in his speech to the Chamber two years ago Butti argued that the Spid had been a failure, also on the basis of the fact that only 5.7 million of general identities had been issued. Too few and a symptom that this solution had failed to take hold of the elderly. Today, however, the active SPIDs are over 33 million.
The Cie already exists and 31.3 million have been distributed in Italy. Nonetheless, it is not always easy to obtain an electronic identity card and some Municipalities refuse to grant it until after the natural expiry of the old document. Sometimes the payment of a contribution is required which, depending on the municipality, can be more or less onerous. For the rest, the Cie always provides a third-level digital identity, while with the Spid it depends on the choices of the citizen, who, if he thinks so, can ask for a smart card with NFC or reader to be connected via USB to the computer.
The Cie has a chip and is accompanied by a pin code and a puk. It works with NFC technology, the same as contactless debit cards.
However, Butti’s positions have been widely criticized and the oppositions have accused the government of wanting to undo a tool that works and that – net of initial mistrust – is considered comfortable and efficient by a growing number of Italians.