Late payments : Italy and Slovakia in Commission’s crosshairs

The European Commission decided, on 18 June, to launch an infringement procedure against Italy and Slovakia as it believes that the two countries are not applying or implementing correctly Directive 2011/7/EU on late payments. In Italy, public authorities take on average 170 days to settle payments for services and goods provided, and 210 days for public works. In some cases, public bodies in the country charge lower interest on late payments than that prescribed by the directive (the rate must…