Italy’s left parties vow dialogue to take down Meloni’s government

Italian left-wing parties took to the streets of Rome to protest Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government and call for cohesion to represent a viable alternative to the centre-right.

Members of Elly Schlein’s Democratic Party (PD/S&D) and the 5-Star Movement of former Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte took part in the protest and gathered at Piazza del Popolo to hear Elly Schlein, Giuseppe Conte, and Angelo Bonelli of the Greens and Nicola Fratoianni of Sinistra Italiana, who called to remain united as an alternative to the ruling right.

“There is an alternative (…) A new phase begins here. The left must be rebuilt (…), but political convergence and a united spirit are also needed. This is the square of rediscovered pride”, Schlein said at the rally – unity they will probably need to face the right in the EU elections of June 2024.

While Conte acknowledged the dialogue on the left front, he did not seem to be committed to the idea of joining forces. “I am for the ‘right camp’ and not the ‘wide camp’. We are here to confirm the dialogue that has already begun with PD (…) we are autonomous forces, and dialogue serves to converge and mark differences”, he said.

From the stage, Schlein and Conte both criticised the measures introduced by the Meloni government – in particular, what they described as failed attempts to combat tax evasion, reform the budget and introduce a minimum wage. In addition to Meloni’s recent deal with Albania to manage migration, the two also strongly criticised Meloni’s proposal to change the premier’s mandate.

“After a year of the Meloni government (…) I would like us to say one simple thing together: enough. Enough with this government that picks on the weakest because the right is always the same and doesn’t give a damn about those who have less”, Schlein said, adding that Meloni “does not want to govern but to lead”.

Meloni quipped back, responding on X with: “Dear Elly, we simply want the citizens to have more power, thus giving more strength and stability to Italy. That is what every sincere ‘democrat’ should support”.

The left-wing parties PD and 5-Star Movement are currently on a slight downward trend with 19.4% and 16%, respectively, according to the latest AGI/YouTrend Supermedia poll.

Meanwhile, Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia is on the rise with 28.8%, while the League and Forza Italia are more or less stable at 9% and 7.3%, respectively.

(Federica Pascale | Euractiv.it)