07/07/2003 (Agence Europe) - Gianni Pittella, member of Democratici di sinistra, welcomes the recent "authoritative intervention" by Commissioner Michel Barnier, who "woke up those who continued to sleep despite repeated warnings" about the risk of Structural Fund losses by end 2003. Italy, he noted, runs the "highest risk" (EUR 3,215 million), followed by the United Kingdom (1,909), France (1,570), Spain (967), Germany (934) and Portugal (561). The high-risk Italian regions are Calabria, Puglia and Sardinia, he recalls, noting moreover that, as far as the rate of implementing intervention is concerned, the least efficient of all is Interreg (only 39%)