Following the recent government crisis in Italy new political elections will be held on 25 September, and migration is part of the political debate.

Far-right party leaders Matteo Salvini (Lega) and Giorgia Meloni (Fratelli d’Italia) are pledging to bring back harsh measures against migrants and refugees as a way of reinforcing public support for their party and far-right coalition, while the centre and centre-left parties tend to be mostly silent on the issue. The main centre-left party, Partito Democratico, generally pledges reform of the ‘Bossi-Fini Law’, the adoption of a new approach to labour migration and the creation of legal pathways to Europe.

Behind the political slogans and the far-right coalition's efforts to capitalise on the recurrent themes of controlled borders and closed ports, however, immigration and - particularly - integration policies are only vaguely addressed in party programmes.

When it comes to the integration of third-country nationals, an issue that was barely addressed in even the 2019 European elections, the main parties’ political manifestos remain vague and disappoint the expectations of civil society actors.

The only relevant exception to this trend is the attention paid to the reform of Italian citizenship. The ius scholae approach to citizenship reform is presented as necessary in three out of four manifestos* (it is absent from that of the right-wing coalition) and is often labeled as a ‘civil rights’ goal, which might reflect the will to de-politicise the issue.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the right-wing coalition joint manifesto does not contain any proposals on citizenship reform, nor on concrete inclusion measures for foreigners (a more detailed reference to inclusion measures can be found in the ‘League’ manifesto).  As for the Movimento 5 Stelle, along with quoting the ius scholae, the manifesto only generally advocates for ‘reinforced policies of social and cultural inclusion’ of immigrants. Among the ‘integration measures’ suggested, the centrist coalition programme (Azione and Italia Viva) lists the implementation of mandatory courses in Italian language and culture and the 'regularisation' of irregular migrants already working in Italy. Finally, the centre-left (PD) stresses the importance of the role of communities, local governments and civil society as drivers of migrant immigration and integration. It also advocates enhancing inclusion measures targeting migrants vulnerable to labour exploitation, and decreasing the 10-year requirement for ‘citizens basic income’.

* The analysis focuses on the manifestos of the four main parties/coalitions (i.e. the left coalitions lead by the Democratic Party (PD); the Movimento 5 Stelle; the centrist coalition of Azione and Italia Viva; and the right-wing coalition composed by Lega Nord, Forza Italia, Fratelli di Italia and Noi Moderati). For an overview of references to immigration in all parties’ manifestos, see ASGI.