About: Luigi Di Maio Archives

Party leaders in the Italian coalition government signalled they will seek leeway from the EU to increase next year's budget deficit, heading on a collision course with the European Commission and investors who want it cut.

It is in no one's interest to hold up budget negotiations at the European Union, the bloc's budget chief warned Tuesday (28 August) after Italy threatened a blockade over the migrant issue.

Hungary’s illiberal Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Italy's hardline Interior Minister Matteo Salvini launched Tuesday (28 August) an anti-migration manifesto aiming at next year's European parliament elections, targeting a common enemy.

Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio on Monday (27 August) threatened to veto the European Union's seven-year budget plan should the bloc not do more to share the burden of migrant arrivals.

Italy’s deputy prime ministers are in disagreement over whether the country’s motorway network should be nationalised following the tragic bridge collapse in Genoa on 14 August.

Although the 150 migrants stranded on the Diciotti rescue ship were able to disembark on Sunday (26 August), Italy’s firebrand Interior Minister Matteo Salvini engaged in another vilification of the EU, calling it “filth” and reiterating threats to stop EU funding.

The European Commission said on Friday (24 August) it will not bow to threats such as those made by Italian deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio, who warned his country could stop paying into the EU budget unless other member states agreed to take in migrants held on a coastguard ship in Sicily.

The European Commission has called a meeting today (25 August) after Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said his party would vote to suspend funding to the EU unless other member states agreed to take in migrants being held on a coastguard ship in Sicily.

US President Donald Trump traded smiles, handshakes and compliments with Italy's populist leader Giuseppe Conte Monday (30 July), as the two rightists presented a united front on everything from Russia to immigration.

French President Emmanuel Macron said yesterday (21 June) populism was spreading across Europe like a disease that Europeans should fight more vigorously instead of criticising the actions of pro-European governments like his.

Italy's far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Tuesday (19 June) defended his plans to count the Roma community living in the country and deport those without legal status, despite outrage at home and abroad.

The leader of Italy's new populist government vowed on Tuesday (5 June) to redistribute migrants in the EU and review EU sanctions against Russia, in his first policy speech to lawmakers since being sworn in.

Italy's coalition between the anti-system 5-Star Movement and the fat-right Northern League will test its power today (5 June) in the first of this week's two parliamentary confidence votes in the new government.

Italy's president set the country on a path to fresh elections on Monday (28 May), appointing a former International Monetary Fund official as interim prime minister with the task of planning for snap polls and passing the next budget.

Italy's president is expected to ask a former International Monetary Fund official today (28 May) to head a stopgap government amidst political and constitutional turmoil, with early elections looking inevitable.

Italy's president on Wednesday (23 May) approved little-known lawyer Giuseppe Conte's nomination to be prime minister of a government formed by far-right and anti-establishment parties.

Italy's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and the far-right League on Monday (21 May) proposed Giuseppe Conte, a little-known law professor, as prime minister to lead their big-spending coalition government.

Italy inched closer towards ending more than two months of political deadlock on Thursday (17 May) as anti-establishment leader Luigi Di Maio said he was confident an agreement would be reached on forming a coalition government with the far-right.

The anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and far-right Northern League plan to ask the European Central Bank to forgive €250 billion of Italian debt, according to a draft of a coalition programme the parties are working on.

The anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and far-right League have made "significant steps" towards forming a government, the two parties said Thursday (10 May) as Italy looked to end nine weeks of political deadlock.

The prospect of an election re-run in Italy grew today (7 May) as President Sergio Mattarella held a final round of consultations to try to break two months of political deadlock with party leaders still far apart.

Talks aimed at resolving Italy's political stalemate failed to break the deadlock and a new round of consultations will be held next week, President Sergio Mattarella said on Thursday (5 April).

Italy's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement, the largest party in parliament after this month's election, should try to form a government with its far-right rivals the League, two of its senior politicians said on Tuesday (27 March).

Senior members of Italy's vanquished Democratic Party yesterday (6 March) eyed a possible deal with the triumphant 5-Star Movement (M5S), following an election that left the country with a hung parliament and anti-establishment and far-right parties vying to form a government.