Deadlines pressing the Meloni government
After days of post-election silence, Giorgia Meloni has returned to speak in front of her party’s executive. The moment to give indications on how to move in view of the appointment that she will most likely be given has arrived and the line dictated was clear. In fact, the Prime Minister in pectore is taking advantage of her party’s audience to send a message to the allies of the coalition, alarmed by the excessive number of “extra-parliamentary” figures in the future executive: the next government will be political, chosen by the Italians, but the possibility of calling in some technical profile if necessary is not excluded. The message that emerges from Meloni’s speeches is her willingness to put the most suitable people in the right role for each one, without having to accept diktats or vetoes of any kind: «no names will be imposed that that are not up to the task», the FdI leader reiterated. This also concerns Matteo Salvini, who only a few hours earlier, at the conclusion of the Lega Federal Council, had presented a list of Ministries wanted by the party: the Interior, the Ministry of Reforms, intended in terms of autonomy, Agriculture, Infrastructure and Transport. Meloni, however, reiterates that the center-right’s victory must not be the occasion «to resolve internal party quarrels, to propose any names or for position profits». Despite the fact that there are still no certain names on the table, the methodology for choosing Ministers seems clear: quality and competence first and foremost for a government that knows it has to deal with «one of the most difficult phases in the history of the Republic». The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict, its repercussions at the national level, the nuclear threat, the echoes of a pandemic that does not seem to have ended, the domino effects of the increasingly pressing economic and energy crisis, the commitments made at the international level, are just some of the challenges to be faced. And as if that were not enough, it all has to be managed within a very strict time frame, given the tight deadlines on which the new executive will have to work.
On this very point, regarding the timing of the NRRP, there has been a remote dispute between outgoing Prime Minister Mario Draghi and the probable incoming Giorgia Meloni. Although up to now there has been a certain synergy and an active spirit of collaboration, the two have shown a clear divergence of opinion on the issue. Draghi, who has made the NRRP one of his flags, has assured that the government has put in place all the tools to implement the Plan on schedule: he is well aware that any delays would mean the loss of funding. And his line is supported by European governance. So the premier passed the ball to the next government «certain that the work will be carried out with the same strength and effectiveness» as the previous one. But it is precisely on the concrete implementation of the plan that Giorgia Meloni disagrees, speaking explicitly of evident delays, difficult to recover, and of “shortcomings” that will not depend on the next center-right government.
Despite this, Meloni is living this moment with an evident sense of responsibility, aware of the difficulty of the task and the challenge it implies for her party, for the coalition she leads and, why not, for the political culture she represents. On the other hand, the Democratic Party, which has closed its first post-vote National Executive, wants to rebuild itself from the ground up. Letta confirmed his step back and sent a clear message: the opposition will do well. On the other hand, the PD, more than leaders at this time, has shown that it needs to think about its political identity and the answers to be given to the major social issues. As for the candidates, for the moment the long-distance challenge between Paola De Micheli and Stefano Bonaccini continues. But there could be new twists and turns, especially when it comes to the congress, which to date has not yet been officially scheduled. Much will depend on the dates of the next administrative elections which will represent the first real breakthrough of the new PD and a sort of early midterm for the new center-right government as well.
