Why Won't The Government Subsidize My Vacation?

This is not actually a terrible idea: “Scandal-plagued Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi is so keen for Italians to holiday close to home that he has instigated a voucher scheme to subsidise Italian holidays for Italians…. Berlusconi believes that boosting local tourism will be a key driver for economic recovery in Italy. If a holiday is the most expensive thing that most Europeans buy all year, it makes sense for Italy to keep that discretionary spending close to home.” I mean, so long as no one goes mushroom hunting. We should do this here! I would love to get the hell out of this inferno right now.