Schlein puts the brakes on Conte: “First the joint programme, then the primaries.” And Avs also gives him a telling-off

“That’s not how it works. First comes the programme agreed by the whole alliance, then the primaries, because whoever wins them must lead the entire coalition, not just their own party.” This was how Democratic Party secretary Elly Schlein responded to the Tg3 journalist who asked her to comment on Giuseppe Conte’s remarks. “But let’s not get bogged down in internal debates right now,” Schlein continued, “let’s focus on this government’s failures and on our concrete proposals, such as the one we’ve all signed up to on equal parental leave, to support millions of Italian families with five months’ leave paid at 100 per cent for both parents.”

But the Democratic Party leader was not the only one to take a stand against the leader of the Five Star Movement. “We’re not in a presidential system, after all!” The Green and Left Alliance takes Giuseppe Conte to task. Following yesterday’s statements regarding the sending of arms to Ukraine and the possibility that the primaries might take place before the joint manifesto is actually drafted – so that certain sticking points (including support for Kyiv, on which the positions of AVS and M5S are aligned) can be resolved – a veritable storm has erupted on the left. And now the leader of Sinistra Italiana, Nicola Fratoianni, has also weighed in, with a preliminary remark: “It is well known that there are differing positions on certain issues, and this is normal within a coalition.” However: “But the primaries – or any potential primaries – cannot become the instrument that determines the programme. It is not the case that whoever wins the primaries sets the programme for the entire coalition.”

Angelo Bonelli is quick to follow suit: “The Green and Left Alliance is interested in policies, not individuals. Italians are not asking us to discuss candidates, but to provide solutions to the climate crisis, low wages, the public health service and the high cost of living. First we must all decide on the policy programme together; then the leader will embody it.” So here too, the policy programme comes first, then the alliance leader. And the AVS is calling for meetings to draft the text as soon as possible: “In September,” continues Fratoianni, “let’s meet to summarise the points and agree on a programme. As for this step, we’ll get there after the general election...”

Avs did, however, respond to the leader of the Five Star Movement regarding the timing of the primaries, but not on the substance of what he said yesterday: Kyiv and Ukraine were not mentioned in the statements made by the pair, who in fact share the same view as Conte regarding the resolution of the war in Ukraine. For this reason, support for Kyiv will remain a major hurdle to overcome, and the Democratic Party will also have to play its part (meanwhile, Elly Schlein has not yet commented on the matter).