The Italian government on Tuesday appointed Antonio Lirosi to act as the country's new watchdog for consumer prices and combat speculation.
The ombudsman position was created in the 2008 budget and Lirosi's name for the post was put forward by Industry Minister Pier Luigi Bersani.
Lirosi is currently director general for market and consumer protection at the industry ministry.
Commenting on his new task, Lirosi admitted that he had ''no magic wand'' but would ''work hard through specific and targeted initiatives in an attempt to do something more than what has been done in the past''.
''If I had a magic wand I'd turn back the hands of time to a year ago when oil was $50 a barrel and grains costs half as much as today. My job is to make sure that Italy does not hurt itself by unjustified price hikes,'' Lirosi said.
''This is not exactly the best moment to start a new job like this. January is the month when price lists are revised for the year and international events are having negative effects on prices throughout Europe,'' he added.
The battle against speculation, Lirosi observed, ''will not bring additional costs and will not be done through new public structures. We will work through the ways and means we have and coordinate our efforts with those other authorities''.
These included chambers of commerce, the tax police and the antitrust authority which will gather information and forward complaints filed by consumers.
Consumer participation, Lirosi observed, ''is the best antidote to combat speculation and foster competition''.
Lirosi added that he would work in four basic areas: ''monitoring-informing; surveillance-repression; persuasion -deterrence; and promotion-control''.
Following Lirosi's appointment, consumer rights group Codacons said that monitoring prices would not be enough to combat unjustified price hikes and speculation and that what were needed were ''tough and immediate'' sanctions.
The group observed that the new position created by the government ''appears to be more cosmetic than functional. Monitoring retail prices is a waste of time if you can't firmly intervene against speculation''.
