By-election in Reggio Calabria on September 27 and 28, diesel price cut extended to September 5
Two Council of Ministers meetings, on August 4 and August 26, set the calendar for the coming weeks: the vote in a Calabrian single-member constituency and a new short extension of the diesel discount, the third of the summer.
The government reaches the end of August with two decisions already taken and a very short-term deadline. The first concerns the vote: the Council of Ministers, meeting on August 4, 2026, resolved to propose to the President of the Republic the decree calling elections for the by-election to the Chamber of Deputies in single-member constituency 05 – Reggio Calabria, in the XXIII Calabria constituency. Polls will open on Sunday, September 27, and Monday, September 28, 2026. The proposal was put forward by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni together with Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, as stated in the press release from the Presidency of the Council.
On this point, the news currently comes from a single source, the official press release from the Presidency of the Council; no independent confirmation is available in the sources consulted. However, this is a primary, institutional source, which reports the resolution in its formal terms. The press release does not indicate the reason for the seat’s vacancy, nor the deadlines for submitting candidacies.
In the same meeting, a regional health recovery plan was also approved, brought before the Council by the Minister of Economy jointly with the Minister of Health. The released text does not specify which region is involved, and without that indication the item remains an administrative calendar entry rather than a readable measure.
The second decision concerns fuel. The Council of Ministers met on Wednesday, August 26, at 6:11 p.m. at Palazzo Chigi, chaired by Meloni, and approved a decree-law extending from August 27 to September 5, 2026, the 17-cent-per-liter reduction on the price of diesel used as fuel. The discount consists of a 14-cent cut in excise duty and 3 cents in VAT, and the same rate applies to paraffinic diesel obtained from synthesis or hydrotreatment and to biodiesel placed on the market as fuel. The measure was proposed by the Prime Minister together with Ministers Giancarlo Giorgetti, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin and Matteo Salvini: this is reported by the press release from the Presidency of the Council, and the calling of the meeting had been anticipated by the news agency Adnkronos, picked up by LSD Magazine.
This is the third measure of its kind in a few weeks. Decree-law no. 133 of July 27 had covered the period from July 28 to August 6; decree-law no. 139 of August 4 covered the period from August 7 to 24, with a cost stated at 190.2 million euros for 2026. The new measure covers ten days.
| Measure | Period covered | Stated cost |
|---|---|---|
| D.L. 133 of July 27 | July 28 – August 6 | not indicated in the dossier |
| D.L. 139 of August 4 | August 7 – 24 | 190.2 million for 2026 |
| Decree of August 26 | August 27 – September 5 | not indicated in the dossier |
The sequence describes a method: short extensions, renewed close to the deadline, without the framework being stabilized into a multi-year measure. Each renewal requires a Council of Ministers meeting and a new decree, and each time the financial coverage must be found for the following period.
What we don’t know. The August 26 press release, as reported, does not indicate the cost of the new decree nor the source of funding. It is not known whether a fourth extension will follow on September 5, whether a selective measure will be introduced, or whether the discount will end: none of the sources consulted contains any indication on this. Two dates remain certain: the expiry of the diesel discount on September 5, 2026, and the opening of the polls in the Calabrian constituency on September 27 and 28.
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