Storm clouds loom for Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s new prime minister

Britain was not the only G7 country to gain a new prime minister in the past week. On October 22nd Giorgia Meloni was sworn in as the head of Italy’s most right-wing government since the second world war. She has moved fast. Less than a month after her Brothers of Italy won more seats than any other party in a general election, Ms Meloni strode into the Quirinal Palace, an opulent former residence of popes, for her swearing-in ceremony. She has deftly put together a coalition government that looks as though it may last longer than Italians, and these days Britons, are used to. Liberals will not cheer. Many recoil at her party’s opposition to abortion and gay unions (though she has promised not to change the status quo on either) and her unwelcoming attitude to irregular immigration. However, she offers three main consolations.