(ANSA) - Strasbourg, October 27 - The EU's granting budget flexibility for the migrant and refugee emergency "is a disgrace", Northern League leader Matteo Salvini said Tuesday. "It's an example of a world turned upside down and I'm sorry (Premier Matteo) Renzi is an accomplice of this world turned upside down," said the leader of the anti-immigrant, anti-euro party. "We for years have been asking for flexibility to sustain employment and pensions and face the climate disasters in Italy.

"They always told us 'No'. "And now they invent flexibility just to maintain spending for immigrants. "Therefore it's a Europe that is very attentive and spends a lot on immigration. "(But) when it's about other people who live and pay (taxes) in Europe, they couldn't care less". Earlier Tuesday European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said that it will be possible to "apply flexibility" in the EU budget regulations due to the cost member States are facing in dealing with the refugee crisis. The head of the EU executive stressed that this was necessary because "we are faced with an exceptional situation".

But he added that whether to grant flexibility will be considered on a "country-by-country" basis as it had to be shown that "exception efforts" in spending have been made.

Renzi's government has said Italy intends to use any additional budget flexibility allowed due to the refugee crisis and let the deficit-to-GDP ration rise 0.2 of a percentage point higher than it would have been otherwise, to 2.4% - a provision that would raise the 2016 budget from 27 to 30 billion euros.

Italy, along with Greece, has been bearing the brunt to the Mediterranean migrant crisis.

