The future of the Strait of Messina Bridge: the Court of Auditors intervenes and requests clarification.

The issue of the Messina Strait Bridge has returned to the forefront of public attention after the Court of Auditors (Corte dei Auditori) requested clarification on the recent resolution approving the final project. The auditing body raised concerns about procedures, costs, and traffic estimates, demanding the government provide explanations within a specific deadline.

The Court of Auditors requests clarification regarding the Strait of Messina Bridge.

The Court of Auditors has requested clarification and further information from the government regarding the CIPESS resolution approving the final design for the Messina Strait Bridge. In the document sent to the Prime Minister's Office, the accounting magistrates highlighted how the resolution appears more like a review of the activities of the entities involved than a comprehensive assessment of the preliminary investigation results .

Among the main concerns are the unconventional methods of transmitting documents , carried out in part via links to the website of the Stretto di Messina company, and discrepancies between the amount certified by KPMG (€10.48 billion) and that approved in the financial framework (€10.50 billion). The Court also requested details on the traffic estimates prepared by TPlan Consulting, which are crucial to the financial plan, and clarifications on the validity of the Council of Ministers resolution of April 9, 2025, which defined the project as being of public interest in order to circumvent certain procedural constraints, also raising questions from the European Commission.

The government described the Court's findings as part of a normal discussion between administrations, ensuring that all requested clarifications will be provided within the established deadlines. According to the Ministry of Infrastructure, the project is not under discussion and the relevant offices are already working to respond to the requests.

On the political front, however, there was no shortage of criticism : Angelo Bonelli of the Green and Left Alliance called the findings "extremely serious," contesting the traffic estimates and raising doubts about economic, environmental, and procedural aspects. The Democratic Party also interpreted the Court's observations as a rejection, announcing parliamentary questions to clarify the project's status for the country.

The Court of Auditors has set a 20-day deadline for responding , after which it may decide "based on the current state of the case" or allow the administration to withdraw the resolution on its own initiative, thus impacting the possible start of construction work and publication in the Official Journal.