Meloni at the mercy of her allies

If we look at the political legacy left by the four years of Meloni’s government, we cannot help but offer a critical assessment. This brief period of favourable political continuity has failed to create value. Firstly, this may seem paradoxical, particularly for the Italian centre-right in the post-Berlusconi era. On a strictly political level, the coalition’s fabric is now fraying, and this process began even before the Vannacci affair. There are increasingly evident differences between the Lega, Fratelli d’Italia and Forza Italia, ranging from foreign policy choices – such as their assessment of Russian influence – to specific domestic policy proposals. Often, the proposal for a new measure is entrusted to a press release and is aimed, at best, at securing a newspaper headline. Over the past four years, the leader has therefore failed to strengthen either the coalition’s shared identity or its programme, to the extent that, when faced with the rise of Futuro Nazionale, she thinks only of using individual amendments to the electoral law. Meloni had promised us she would revitalise the nation, yet she is struggling even to steer her allies. After all, if this were not the case, she would not be afraid of Giuseppe Conte.