margin containment. third, the future course of tourism, and of the rest of the economy, will be highly influenced by the impact of new technologies. specifically, the use of new technologies is becoming widespread among the younger generations. among other effects, this changes the nature of tourism service providers, such as travel agencies, which now face stiffer competition from digital platforms. in turn, the rise of working from home could blur the separation between leisure and business trips, increase average stays and reduce the seasonality of tourism. against this backdrop, industry players need to actively adopt the new technologies to adapt to the new demand patterns and to harness the management and cost advantages offered by the new digital tools. this is a field in which public and private - sector cooperation may be particularly important, with the public sector acting as a catalyst for innovation, since the positive externalities generated by firms ’ innovation activities for the rest of the productive system may lead to a less than optimal level of private investment in innovation. 38 for a more recent analysis, see valeria cirillo and andrea ricci. ( 2022 ) : “ heterogeneity matters : temporary employment, productivity and wages in italian firms. ” economia politica, 39, pp. 567 - 593. https : / / doi. org / 10. 1007 / s40888 - 020 - 00197 - 2 according to the ine ’ s tourism satellite account, around 82 % of tourism firms had two employees or fewer ( 83 % in the national total ) and only 0. 2 % of the total had 100 employees or more ( 0. 4 % in the national total ). however, the aggregate data conceal very different realities by sub - sector. on the upside, within the hospitality sector, accommodation services stand out, with 1 % of firms having more than 100 employees. see, for example, bardhan ( 2002 ), mora - sanguinetti and perez - valls ( 2020 ), de lucio and mora - sanguinetti ( 2021 ), de lucio and mora - sanguinetti ( 2022 ), mora - sanguinetti ( 2022 ) and mora - sanguinetti, quintana, soler, spruk and rok ( 2023 ). miguel almunia and david lopez - rodriguez. 2015. “ under the radar : the effects of monitoring firms on tax compliance. ” american economic journal : economic policy, 10 (

allow for lower taxes and facilitate private investment and also government investment. low interest rates give the public sector more scope for investment to improve the public infrastructure. a comparison of growth rates in europe confirms that countries with lower deficits have faster growth rates, whereas countries like germany, which have repeatedly exceeded the pact ’ s 3 % deficit limit ( 2002 : 3. 5 %, 2003 : 4 %, also expected to be well over 3 % in 2004 ), have to battle persistent stagnation and unemployment. the pact is therefore also a sort of insurance against the typical risks to growth and prosperity in modern societies with a high spending - to - gdp ratio. it is insurance against the temptation to use lavish government benefits to buy votes in the present and pass the bill on to future generations which are not yet eligible to vote. “ sustainability ” is not just an ecological principle ; it is also a principle of fiscal responsibility. it is particularly important against the backdrop of the demographic strains and the attendant hidden government debt caused by an ageing society. we need to remember that “ economy ”, in the sense of its greek root word oikonomia, simply translates to “ management of a household or family ”, ie rule - based behaviour. 3. thirdly, the obligation to keep government deficits below the 3 % limit is by no means rigid. weighing up all the pros and cons, it is an appropriate and sound course of action. – the pact strives to achieve balanced budgets throughout the entire economic cycle. budgetary positions close to balance or in surplus in good years allow automatic stabilisers ( cyclically - related lower tax revenue, higher costs of unemployment ) in economically bad years. – practical experience ( eg abeyance if a member state has promised to take measures which have not yet been implemented ) has shown that the monitoring and infringement procedure is quite time - consuming. in practice, the process from “ early warning ” to “ recommendations ” to “ defining a deadline for adaptation ” to the imposition of an interest - free loan to a fine may last two to three years - giving governments sufficient time to take flexible adjustment measures. – finally, what is often forgotten is that the 3 % - limit was chosen for maastricht against the background of an expected nominal growth rate of 5 % and a real trend growth rate of 3 % ( 3 % nominal deficit in terms of 5 % growth result in a trend debt level of 60 % ). today we know that