ROME, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni

plans to cut by some 4.6 billion euros ($5 billion) the funds

set aside to support Italy's automotive industry between 2025

and 2030, the text of next year's budget showed, triggering

widespread criticism.

The move comes amid a global slowdown in sales of electric

vehicles (EVs), partly due to diverging policies on green

incentives, which has forced automakers worldwide including

Fiat-maker Stellantis ( STLA ) to adjust their plans.

The cut "is an unacceptable surprise that blatantly

contradicts the important work that the government is doing in

Europe in favour of the sector to improve regulation," business

lobby group ANFIA said in a statement on Monday.

The government led by Meloni's predecessor Mario Draghi

earmarked 8.7 billion euros in 2022 through 2030 to support its

carmaking sector.

But the budget unveiled by the right-wing administration

this month shows that Meloni wants to divert a large part of the

funds to finance other measures.

Under the budget bill, to be approved by both houses of

parliament by the end of December and therefore still subject to

changes, the bulk of the cuts are concentrated between 2028 and

2030, a period in which they amount to around 2.4 billion euros.

Opposition Democratic Party (PD) seized on the disclosure to

call for the resignation of Industry Minister Adolfo Urso.

The reported cut comes after Stellantis ( STLA ) CEO Carlos Tavares

noted earlier this month, in an Italian parliamentary hearing,

that Italy had earmarked far less funding than other major EU

nations for supporting the auto industry.

($1 = 0.9242 euros)