“Sometimes we’ll get it right, other times we won’t. But we will not betray or throw in the towel,” says the Italian prime minister, who promises weighty reforms even if they are unpopular
Giorgia Meloni asked the Italian Parliament on Tuesday for confidence in her government, presenting herself as a self-made person who, from a minority party born on the extreme right, has managed to lead the conservatives in the European Parliament to become the most voted in Italy. Now that she has seized the reins of power, she vows to undertake the major reforms the country needs even if they prove unpopular and cost her opposition protests and street demonstrations. “Sometimes we’ll get it right, other times we won’t. But we will not betray or throw in the towel », she affirmed, promising that she was going to « break the forecasts », as she boasted of having been doing all her life.
Before submitting to the investiture motion, the positive result of which is taken for granted, since the right-wing bloc that won the elections a month ago has an absolute majority in both Houses of Parliament, the new prime minister guaranteed that she would not alter the position of the country in the European Union and that it will maintain support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. “Italy has a duty to contribute fully to the Atlantic Alliance. Whether we like it or not, freedom has a price. Italy will continue to be a trustworthy partner with NATO in supporting the courageous Ukrainian people who oppose the Russian invasion. Giving in to Putin’s blackmail with energy would not solve the problem,” said Meloni, who became the supporter of her country’s support for kyiv in the face of the defense that her ally Silvio Berlusconi recently made of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The new head of the Rome Executive also sent a message of confidence to Brussels in the speech she offered this Tuesday in the Chamber of Deputies. “This government will respect the rules currently in force. And at the same time, it will offer its contribution to change those that have not worked, combining the affirmation of its own national interest with the awareness of a common European and Western destiny,” said Meloni, whose nearly 70-minute speech was interrupted several times by the applause of parliamentarians.
New “fiscal pact”
Flanked by her two deputy prime ministers, Antonio Tajani, former president of the European Parliament and head of the Foreign Affairs portfolio, and Matteo Salvini, leader of the League and head of the Ministry of Infrastructure, the new head of the Executive of Rome was unraveling which are going to be the priorities of his Cabinet for the next few years, since he hopes to exhaust the legislature. It is not something trivial in a country weighed down by the scant political survival of her governments, which last on average just over a year. To gain stability, Meloni showed her desire, already raised during the electoral campaign, to launch a constitutional reform that reforms the Italian political system to move to semi-presidentialism. She offered a hand to the opposition to make this change with consensus, but threatened to go ahead with her plans even if she does not obtain them.
The new head of the Executive of Rome also promised a new “fiscal pact” and faced her “original sin”: coming from a party with neo-fascist origins. He assured that he has never felt “sympathy or closeness” towards any of the anti-democratic regimes, “including fascism”, criticized the racial laws promoted by Benito Mussolini and guaranteed that he will not touch civil rights, as the opposition fears, including that of the abortion.
‘The president’ or ‘the president’?
The first woman to lead a government in Italy has surprised both inside and outside its borders by deciding to be called “the president” of the Council of Ministers, as the head of the Executive is called in the country. Even the Academia de la Crusca, the body that monitors the proper use of the Italian language, has had to intervene in the face of Giorgia Meloni’s resignation to use the female gender when naming her new position. “Female titles are always legitimate and whoever uses them accepts a historical process that began long ago. Who instead prefers the traditional masculine forms in any case has the right to do so, ”explained Claudio Marazzini, president of the Crusca Academy.
Similar discussions have been experienced in the past in Italy with the arrival of women in other positions of power such as the presidency of the Senate or the Chamber of Deputies. Although both options are correct, so “there is nothing strange in using one or the other”, Marazzini made it clear that behind this apparently only grammatical discussion there is an “ideological value” that Meloni has underlined by choosing to be called “the President”.
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