30 per cent ahead of Meloni

Mattarella aside, the history of restrictions on the concentration of foreign pupils spans two governments and two ministries. February 2014, Maria Chiara Carrozza in the Letta government; November 2020, Lucia Azzolina’s ministry in the second Conte government. In both cases, the 30 per cent rule was not simply a principle that had survived a change of government. It was referred to in the instructions issued to schools, alongside the measures necessary to ensure compliance.

For Carrozza, there is also a personal stance involved. On 7 August 2013, in the Chamber of Deputies, Fabio Rampelli called for the full implementation of the January 2010 circular on pupil allocation. The minister responded without questioning the validity of the provision.

Carrozza explained that the requirement was reiterated every year in the enrolment guidelines. He clarified, however, that the aim was not to reduce the presence of foreign nationals as such, but to promote the right to education, integration and academic success. The threshold was indicative and allowed for exceptions: language skills, available resources, educational continuity and the absence of alternatives. Reaffirming the rule did not mean turning it into an absolute ban. [1]

The next step came with the Guidelines for the Reception and Integration of Foreign Pupils, issued on 19 February 2014. The government is still led by Enrico Letta. Alongside Carrozza, the cabinet includes Andrea Orlando, Minister for the Environment; Dario Franceschini, Minister for Relations with Parliament; Graziano Delrio, Minister for Regional Affairs; and Emma Bonino, Minister for Foreign Affairs. Cécile Kyenge serves as Minister for Integration. It is the broad coalition government led by Letta, a member of the PD.

On page 11, in the paragraph on subscription management, the Guidelines refer to Circular No. 2 of 2010 and set out its provisions.

The document goes beyond mere numbers. It identifies who is responsible for taking action, when they must do so, and with whom they must liaise. Planning must take place before enrolment; it involves regional education authorities, local authorities and educational institutions. And the section dedicated to the regional authorities uses a specific verb.

They must therefore take action. The measures outlined include management meetings, agreements between schools and local authorities, and the involvement of prefectures, provincial councils and local councils. Schools should also consider reviewing their catchment areas, where this would help to regulate enrolment. Parents must be provided with accurate information on available schools, to prevent, as far as possible, enrolment figures exceeding the threshold.

The same lines also highlight the flexibility that complements the rule. The director of the regional education office may raise the threshold where pupils possess adequate language skills. The text refers to those born in Italy or who have completed their schooling there. However, it also allows for the opposite scenario.

The reduction is linked to an inadequate command of Italian or to particular levels of complexity. Carrozza’s framework therefore brought together citizenship, language, distribution and the assessment of specific cases. The exceptions did not negate the threshold: they formed part of it. Applying that framework also meant complying with the criteria for exceptions. 

Six years later, the same threshold reappears in note no. 20651 of 12 November 2020 on enrolments for 2021–2022. The Prime Minister is Giuseppe Conte; the Minister for Education is Lucia Azzolina. The document bears the signature of the Director-General, Maria Assunta Palermo: it is not a law approved by the Council of Ministers, but an act of the ministry during that government. 

In paragraph 9.3, on page 20, the note refers in full to the 2010 circular and reiterates the standard limit of 30 per cent per class, referring to non-Italian citizenship or limited knowledge of Italian. It calls for regional planning in collaboration with local authorities and prefectures and highlights the obligations of regional school heads, with a specific objective in mind.

Who was in the Conte II government? Roberto Speranza at Health, Roberto Gualtieri at the Economy, Stefano Patuanelli at Economic Development, Lorenzo Guerini at Defence, Dario Franceschini at Culture, Francesco Boccia at Regional Affairs, and Giuseppe Provenzano at the South. At the Ministry of Education, alongside Azzolina, Anna Ascani served as Deputy Minister. The government comprised the M5S, the PD, LeU and Italia Viva.

Having served as ministers does not mean they signed those instructions, nor does it prove a lack of objections at all times. The documents do, however, show continuity: in the Letta and Conte II governments, the relevant ministry reaffirmed the threshold and the measures required to implement it. They do not prove that every subsequent proposal was identical. They show that the 30 per cent threshold, with its exemptions, was not alien to the education policies of governments supported, including those of the centre-left.