Legislative in Italy: the temptation of populism

Today’s election is a turning point for Italy. Hit hard by the Covid-19 epidemic, the upheavals of the euro and the migrant crisis, the country raised its head last year. Then the war in Ukraine, and especially the departure of Mario Draghi, disavowed by three parties of his coalition in the Senate, plunged the peninsula back into gloom in the heart of summer.

“The majority of Italians were in shock, testifies Denis Delespaul, director of a consulting firm and president of the Franco-Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIFI) in Milan. We had historically in Italy a coalition government that went from the left to almost the far right with Salvini’s Lega, but up to the “Five Stars” were in the Draghi government, headed by a man respectable, internationally recognized and highly competent.”

With 192 billion euros collected, Italy is the first beneficiary of the plan of subsidies and loans granted by the EU. “The big concern, explains Mr. Delespaul, is that this exceptional aid is only a passing train. Will the next government live up to what the European Union expects?

However, this vote comes at the worst time for Italy, particularly exposed to Russia, even if its dependence on Russian gas has fallen from 40 to 25% thanks to a diversification of its supplies from Algeria, Egypt or Qatar. However, the shock this autumn promises to be violent for companies and employees in Italy, and in particular for the 2,000 French companies present in Italy, of all sizes and all sectors combined. They employ around 250,000 people in total.

The France Italy CCI

Find this chronicle on the site, the app and in the international mobility magazine “Français à l’étranger.fr”