Stalking, domestic abuse, rape, genital mutilation, femicide: from the first Extraordinary National Plan of 2015 to the many Regional measures, over the past years the instruments aimed at protecting women have multiplied. The enforcement of such measures, however, is often left to circular letters that make it difficult for the victim to get to know the available tools for her defence (and to request their implementation). The Impact Assessment Office zeros-in on anti-violence resources by drafting the first pertinent guide for citizens.

Ever since 3:36 AM on August 24, 2016, Italy has been dealing with the third major reconstruction process in less than ten years. So far, for the three earthquakes, the government has granted 40,5 billion, 1,8 of which in the past year alone. What, how and where will those billions be spent on? Is the regulatory framework - made up byseveral ever-changing decrees and 96 orders by Special Commissioner and Civil Defence authorities - clear and effective? Has the response given to the newly-homeless population been prompt?

In 1,833 days, Senators introduced 2,539 bills. What issues were Senators most interested in? Justice and constitutional affairs were the top scorers, followed by health, culture and pensions. Family and children follow armed forces, safety at work follows trade law. Foreign trade, local finance, Southern Italy and energy, combined, fall short of 1% of bills submitted.

In 2000 Italy abandoned compulsory conscription and migrated, after 144 years, to a leaner military model (from 265.000 men and women to 190,000) entirely composed of professionals. International peace-keeping and peace-enforcing missions became the core task of Italian armed forces, but the crisis that exploded in 2008 has deeply affected the fulfillment of the reform. And between reductions in personnel (expected to number no more than 150,000 by 2024), the ageing of the volunteers in service and severe cuts in spending and investment, even the commitment of troops abroad no longer reached the levels of the early 2000s.

Up until the fifteenth legislature, the Italian government chose which Community acts to send to Parliament for examination. The flow varied widely (2 documents in 1999, 115 in 2000, one in 2002) until in 2006 the European Commission amended its standard practice. Today, dialogue between Rome and Brussels is direct and continuous: during the XVII legislature, the Italian Senate "processed" 924 European acts, of which at least ten per week were flagged by the Government as being of national interest. How are Senators organized to cope with this pace?

If well-implemented, the evaluation cycle is an excellent tool for political decision-makers, making it possible to choose which one of a number of options is likely to produce the best results. In Italy, the use of these techniques - impact analysis and assessment (AIR and VIR), measuring administrative burdens (MOA), and consultations - is often undertaken merely as a bureaucratic exercise. A system of AIRs and VIRs integrated between the various levels of government is missing and only in very rare cases have approved acts undergone ex-post monitoring and assessment.

The first general election in Republican Italy was held on 18 April 1948. In Parliament there were only 49 women, equal to 5%. Almost 30 years and seven parliaments went by before Italy, in March 2018, elected more than 300 women. The 18th Parliament is experiencing another record: the Senate elected its first female president. Italy has yet to have a woman Prime Minister, and only 83 women were appointed ministers thus far, out of 1,500 appointments. Only two of Italy's regions have a female governor. Just 13 out of a 100 mayors are women.

Emergency decrees, enabling laws, execution of regulatory powers: over the past decades, the Government has considerably expanded its regulatory activity, involving the Parliament - as envisaged by the legislator. From 1996 to 2016 the opinion of Parliament Committees was requested 2,786 times. And what were the results? To what extent have the opinions been followed up?

How many are there? Who runs them? What do they do? How much do they earn? In Italy, for years we have been trying the complete the pertinent map, which is crucial to sort out a fragmented system that lacks transparency. In 2014, the spending review special commissioner actually identified four different databanks. The Treasury Department seeks information every year from over ten thousand public administration offices. But too many have never answered.

From 28 April 2006 to 31 December 2016 the senators submitted 1,271 interpellations, 7,780 oral questions and 19,309 questions requiring a written reply, for a total of 28,360 parliamentary oversight acts, 6,913 (roughly 24%) of which were followed up, between the 15th and 17th parliament.

The evaluation of civil servants and the quality of the services provided to citizens-users have become increasingly important in recent years. The Senate is not part of the Public Administration, but nevertheless, in 2001 it started measuring its performances: a drop in personnel (-40% since 2006) and in financial resources (-32% in real terms), an increase in the services offered. Here is the latest report from the Senate.