Opinion Italy’s hard right and what it could mean for an already distressed Europe

Over the last few months, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the threat to liberal values, democracy and the rules-based order was seen in the West as emanating from far-off capitals — Moscow, Beijing, Tehran. But with the election results in Italy now confirmed, it is clear that the spectre lies far closer home. For the first time since World War II, Europe’s third-largest economy will have a far-right government. The coalition led by Giorgia Meloni — soon to be Italy’s first woman prime minister — commands a majority in both houses of the legislature.

Meloni’s Brothers of Italy (BOI) was formed a decade ago, but the party has roots in the pro-Mussolini post-War neo-Fascist movement. While Italy’s prime minister-designate has tried her best to distance herself from these roots, her politics-in-practice — as well as that of her allies Matteo Salvini and Silvio Berlusconi — does not inspire optimism. The BOI’s political platform threatens to exacerbate the so-called “culture wars”. On LGBTQI and women’s rights, the far-right in Italy has taken a regressive stance. Meloni has also been parroting the dubious “Great Replacement” theory — that white Christians will be outnumbered by migrants — and as a result, appears to subscribe to anti-minority and racist politics.

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The right-wing victory in Italy has implications beyond its borders. One of the fundamental tenets of such politics — Brexit in the UK, Viktor Orban in Hungary — has been that domestic laws should supersede those of the EU. At a time when Europe is in an economic crisis — as a result of the Ukraine conflict — that threatens to become a political one, there is a justifiable fear that a politics of othering will spread to more nations. Meloni’s premiership also threatens the pan-EU unity on Russia. While she has insisted that her government will continue to stand against Vladimir Putin’s aggression, both Salvini and Berlusconi have tilted towards the Russian leader in the past.