Premier Giorgia Meloni has called an emergency meeting after Italy’s Audit Court blocked the Strait of Messina bridge project. Transport Minister Matteo Salvini told Corriere della Sera that the government would meet on Thursday to address the setback.

The €13.5 billion project aims to connect Sicily with the mainland through a 3.3 kilometre suspension bridge. It also includes 40 kilometres of new road and rail links, three train stations and a business centre in Calabria.

The Audit Court refused to approve the plan, surprising ministers who expected a quick endorsement after CIPESS approved it in August. Meloni condemned the decision, calling it “an invasion of jurisdiction over the choices of government and Parliament.”

She linked the ruling to wider judicial interference, a theme central to her planned reform of the justice system. That reform, due for Senate approval, would separate the career paths of judges and prosecutors to prevent role switching.

Meloni said the constitutional and audit court reforms are “the most appropriate response to this intolerable intrusiveness.”

Bridge project revived by Salvini

Salvini revived the bridge project after the centre-right coalition’s 2022 election win, promising completion by 2032 or 2033. The idea, championed decades ago by Silvio Berlusconi, has long divided Italians because of its cost and environmental risks.

Critics also warn about seismic dangers and potential mafia infiltration in such a large public works scheme.

Opposition leader Elly Schlein of the Democratic Party accused Meloni of using the dispute to justify her judiciary reform. “Meloni wants a free hand above the law and the Constitution,” Schlein said after Wednesday’s government backlash.

On Friday, the contractor for the bridge project, Webuild, started recruitment for it.

The Audit Court said it would release its reasoning within 30 days, leaving the project in political limbo.

Until then, the bridge remains suspended between ambition and accountability.