British Politicians Should Take Italian Lessons
Giorgia Meloni has become the star politician of Europe and a master of popularity, populism and pragmatism.
Meloni with French President Emmanuel Macron (left) and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer (center)
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In Europe, the model of modern government meltdowns used to be Italian. That was the unfortunate impression left by a two-year period right after World War II, when the country saw six different governments. Today, the cautionary tale is Brexit Britain, which has seen six different prime ministers since David Cameron put the country on course to leave the European Union with his 2016 referendum. Indeed, in 2022, Britain had three prime ministers in three months. And the country is now in the middle of more turmoil over how much longer Keir Starmer gets to be in office — as Rosa Prince has written — with Nigel Farage watching and waiting from the far right (though Martin Ivens says Farage has to wipe that smug smile off his face). All this makes Adrian Wooldridge look admiringly at the stability that Giorgia Meloni has managed to instill in Italy.