In a pointed address to the Chamber of Deputies, Elly Schlein, the leader of the Democratic Party (PD), challenged Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to abandon her confrontational approach and take the parliamentary discourse more seriously. Schlein expressed frustration over Meloni’s frequent attacks on the opposition, suggesting that if the Prime Minister had invested a euro for each time she criticized others, the country’s healthcare waiting lists would have been resolved. She also welcomed the return of her Lega colleagues to the chamber, criticizing the Minister of Transport for the travel disruptions that kept them away.
Schlein further condemned the government’s handling of asylum requests from Syria, highlighting the ongoing humanitarian crisis and the urgent need for a coherent foreign policy. She pointed out that despite the turmoil in Syria, the primary focus of European states, including Italy, appears to be on blocking asylum seekers rather than addressing the root causes of the conflict. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has underscored the lack of safe conditions for repatriation, which Schlein argued reflects the government’s obsession with migration over its diplomatic responsibilities.
The opposition leader also criticized the government’s inaction regarding the ceasefire in Lebanon, stressing the need for Europe to play a more significant diplomatic role in the region. She lamented the absence of any effective European Union intervention in global conflicts, which has shifted toward a paradigm dominated by power struggles rather than dialogue and coexistence. Schlein accused Meloni of mismanaging funds allocated for migrant centers in Albania, questioning the efficacy of such investments and urging the Prime Minister to acknowledge the situation’s seriousness. In response, Meloni defended her administration’s immigration policies, insisting that mass immigration must be curbed.
