The Lombardy region is to offer pregnant women who are in financial difficulty 4,500 euros to keep their babies. Governor of Lombardy Roberto Formigoni has created the 5 million euro “Nasko” fund to “help the family, maternity and the birth rate” and says that no woman in Lombardy should have to have an abortion for financial reasons. The money will be paid to the women in eighteen 250 euro instalments.
Although the initiative has been welcomed by many, including the Italian Bishops’ Conference, criticism has been sharp and widespread: journalist and writer Cinzia Sasso has asked what the women are supposed to do after eighteen months and has said that the number of women who will actually receive the benefit is “laughable”. Meanwhile, the online consumer journal “Il Salvagente” comments that if all the women in Lombardy who were considering abortion for financial reasons took up the offer the money would run out within three months.
Now Vittorio Gervasi, Councillor for Family Policy in Montesilvano [Abruzzo] is calling upon the Governor of Abruzzo to create a “Nasko” fund too. He has expressed concern about the falling birth rate in the region and says that to have a child there should be a guaranteed right rather than a luxury.
