- In
2017, the number of migrants arriving in Italy by the
Mediterranean was sharply down
- Italy’s
new electoral law will loom large in determining the winner in 2018
- Italian politicians appear to believe that
there is no market for a more liberal approach
Whoever wins the next
Italian election is bound to promise to get tougher on immigration. Voters are
increasingly concerned about the issue, though it is far from obvious that the
country is going through an “immigration crisis.” Pro-immigration advocates
harp on Italy’s need to expand its labor force and shore up its social security
system, but the point is hardly winning hearts and minds. A deciding factor in
the upcoming elections between the left, the right and the populist Five Star
Movement could be the contestants’ ability to take a credible, tough position
on the issue.
According to a 2016
Eurobarometer analysis, immigration is perceived by 49 percent of Italians as
Europe’s most significant challenge. As many as 42 percent also consider it the
most important domestic issue, though more Italians (47 percent) rank
unemployment at the top. Tellingly, these figures far outstrip concern about
terrorism, which is rated as the most serious European issue by 23 percent of
Italians and the most pressing problem domestically by only 8 percent. While
fear of immigration and fear of terrorist attacks are often conflated, Italian
voters seem to distinguish sharply between the two.