“The Italian state owes some 75 billion euros to private suppliers. The unpaid bills have starved companies of cash and triggered layoffs, factory closures and bankruptcies. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi promised in March to pay back all the debt arrears by July. Within a week he put back the target date to September. The government is finding it hard to tackle the problem because of public finance constraints, inefficiency, uncertainty over exactly how much is owed and a reluctance on the part of some public bodies to acknowledge their debts. Italy is aiming to raise 8-10 billion euros from privatizations over the next two years to help cut its public debt.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/06/us-italy-debts-minister-idUSKBN0FB0EB20140706