Abstract

The essay focuses on the recent case law of the Italian Constitutional Court on social security and highlights three general assumptions which apparently underpin it: the basic concept was (as in older cases), and still is, political discretion on social security rights; budget constraints acquired greater prominence, both in EU and constitutional law, but did not alter significantly the judicial review of legislation on social security; this kind of judicial review mostly moves through interior lines within specific sectors, or decisional processes, and emphasizes methodological aspects of political choice and responsibility.