Live news: Italy to supply €2.2bn aid package after floods hit Emilia-Romagna

Italy has announced a €2.2bn relief package for the flood-hit its Emilia-Romagna region, where an estimated 23,000 people have lost their homes and thousands of hectares of fertile farmlands were damaged after the region received more than half of its annual average rainfall in the space of just 36 hours.

At least 15 people are known to have died in the floods, which drove tens of thousands of people from their homes, and damaged thousands of fruit-bearing trees in one of the country’s most fertile and productive agricultural areas.

The relief package includes direct support for affected businesses, and moratoriums on the collection of tax and social contributions for flood-hit companies.