Monday, 21 May 2018

An Italian populist government looks likely, and risky

LUIGI DI MAIO (pictured, left) is only 31, but as leader of the Five Star Movement (M5S), he is poised for a decisive role in Italy’s next government. After coming first in the general election on March 4th, the M5S appeared close this week to sealing a coalition agreement with the far-right Northern League and its leader, Matteo Salvini (pictured, right). That would give Italy, and western Europe, its first all-populist government. Mr Di Maio, a university drop-out, is known for his grammatical howlers, but he can concoct a good soundbite. “Obviously, history is being written,” he declared on May 13th, as he left another round of the interminable coalition talks. “So it takes a bit of time.”

One problem the two sides had not resolved, as The Economist went to press, was finding a prime minister. (A possibility was that each party’s choice might serve half a term.) Yet the programme on which they were toiling may indeed be historic. If they...Continue reading

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