Italy convulsed by vote against EU and migrants
EU leaders were stunned last night after Italian voters backed parties that oppose links with Brussels and want tougher immigration curbs.
The idea that another of the bloc’s leading countries had turned against it left the EU’s reform plans in tatters.
More than 50 per cent of voters dismissed establishment parties such as the ruling democrats and the party headed by disgraced former PM Silvio Berlusconi.
Instead they threw their weight behind the anti- establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) and the eurosceptic League, who have pushed for a tougher immigration regime.
The result highlights widespread concern caused by Italy’s position at the forefront of the European migration crisis, with leaders promising radical measures to deport asylum seekers.
Concern has been heightened due to the country’s fragile economy and towering debt, which stands at 132 per cent of GDP.
The wave of support for parties that have either called for a referendum on the euro or criticised the bloc will seriously weaken EU reform plans being led by France.
Fears about economic turbulence in the Mediterranean country were yesterday driven by the prospect of a hung parliament after no party or political group won a majority in the polls.
The Five Star Movement emerged as the big winner, taking 32.6 per cent of votes despite being founded by comedian Beppe Grillo nine years ago to appeal to disillusioned voters. Its current leader Luigi Di Maio, 31, described the party’s success as a ‘beautiful day’ despite falling short of the 40 per cent needed to form a majority.
The party capitalised on anger towards Italy’s establishment parties, gaining huge support in southern Italy’s rural regions by calling for an end to corruption and supporting workers’ rights.
Speaking after yesterday’s result, Mr Di Maio said he had reversed a previous promise not to form a coalition government and would speak to all other political groups.
This could lead to an unlikely grouping with the ruling Democratic Party, whose shambolic 19 per cent of the vote led to the resignation of leader Matteo Renzi.
But in a move that would be seen as a serious threat in Brussels, the party could join the anti-immigrant League party, previously known as the Northern League.
Both parties have blamed the EU for affecting the fortunes of working families and have called for lower taxes and more independence from EU financial rules.
The League is led by Matteo Salvini, a 44-year- old firebrand, who helped the party secure 17.4 per cent of the vote.
The party’s popularity, particularly in areas of high immigration, was led by a significant presence on social networks where figures regularly launched attacks on EU regulation and border control.
His anti- EU approach has included dismissing the euro as a ‘crime against humanity’, while his warnings about a ‘migrant invasion’ and calls for segregated public transport have caused alarm. However, Mr Salvini ruled out ‘taking part in minestrone governments’ and said ‘no, no, no’ when asked if he would join his rivals in the Five Star Movement.
Instead, he threw his weight behind the centre-right group his party campaigned alongside before the referendum.
The grouping was previously led by Mr Berlusconi, the 81-year-old media mogul whose Forza Italia party slumped to an embarrassing 14 per cent at the polls, becoming the junior partner in the grouping.
The result will put a dampener on the three-time Italian leader’s political comeback, which was already hindered by his inability to stand as Italian leader due to a conviction for tax fraud.