Workers without helmets, Meloni attacks Repubblica: "Controversy over nothing." The newspaper's response

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attacked Repubblica for an article published today in our newspaper titled " Workers working without helmets on the scaffolding of Palazzo Chigi ," clarifying that the renovation work on the building on Via dell'Impresa shown in the photos "was not contracted out by the presidency and does not concern the portions of the building leased to it," the prime minister wrote on her social media profiles.

The post continues: "The property is not owned by the Prime Minister's Office but by a private individual, and the work documented in the article involves portions of the building that the owner has rented to other private individuals for commercial purposes. Despite having no responsibility, the Prime Minister's Office promptly notified the property owner of the need to strictly comply with workplace safety regulations. This notification was also forwarded to the relevant authorities." The prime minister accuses Repubblica of having created "a controversy out of nothing" and of publishing "unfounded news" to blame the government.

Our newspaper's response

The Prime Minister writes that La Repubblica is creating controversy out of nothing against the government. You be the judge of whether reporting—complete with photos—the presence of workers without hard hats on the scaffolding of a building that has also housed Palazzo Chigi offices for years, in an area where, for legitimate safety reasons, access is restricted by law enforcement, is a sign of this or a sign of proper conduct. We reported the violation—without ever attributing it to the occupant of Palazzo Chigi—of accident prevention regulations. Therefore, we are pleased to note that in her social media post, Meloni states that she promptly reported the incident (thanks to our article) to the property owner and the relevant authorities.