All eyes on Italy
The Italians are heading to the polls on Sunday but it is much less clear where the nation is heading. With roughly 40 percent still undecided on how they will vote, the outcome is still up in the air, or hazy at best.
Italian elections matter, not just for us, Maltese, but also for the wider European community. It is after all the third largest economy in the eurozone. It seems that no party or coalition is expected to win an outright majority which would effectively mean long months of protracted negotiations, further political and economic instability.
It is the dreaded outcome European leaders want to avoid because Italy is part and parcel of the euro area and because instability in Italy is bound to have an effect on the wider European economy.
Brexit, the Italian election and the wider migration phenomenon are all reminders of how interlinked and intertwined European states are today. European leaders are hoping against hope that the election result delivers a stable government, something that is not likely at this stage. However as we all know that the polls occasionally make poor crystal balls.
Migration and widespread unemployment have been topmost concerns among Italian citizens and it is partly why the Italian Socialists / Social Democrats have lost ground considerably. There have been some indications of an economic recovery recently but the effects have not yet been felt by most citizens.
European leaders would do well to get their act together on migration as Italy has been left in the lurch for far too long. President Juncker has pushed and pushed and pushed on helping Italy and Greece in the height of the Balkan route crises and he’s still pushing now. The resistance comes mainly from four central European countries. Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, who still refuse to share the burden.
It is absolutely unacceptable that the EU has not yet found a lasting solution on migration with thousands of migrants waiting to leave North Africa to Europe. Widespread euro scepticism in Italy is largely linked incessant arrivals of migrants and the inflation registered soon after the introduction of the euro currency there.
So if Italians are turning against Europe and voting for extremists, the EU is partly to blame. Just a few weeks ago, someone, somewhere decided that the EU search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean will start bringing migrants to Malta, if it is the closest safe port. In EU jargon, operation Triton was replaced by operation Themis. I asked the Prime Minister in Parliament to shed some light on this but he did not give an answer. But the crucial point here is not who decided what but rather why is the EU so helpless in solving such a pressing continental and global issue.
The EU has just started discussing its budget for the seven years starting from 2021.
Will it put its money where its mouth is? Will it invest in European projects in African countries from which migrants usually leave?
As to Italy, it would be highly desirable if the Maltese government tries to enter into an agreement with the Italian government on migration.
It would pre-empt the possibility of diplomatic spats, between the two countries, on which country has to host migrant rescues on high seas as happened not so long ago.
In the meantime we hope that the election result does deliver a decisive result as it would be good for Italy, good for Malta and good for Europe.
The Italians are heading to the polls on Sunday but it is much less clear where the nation is heading.