New Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her government are sworn in

Italy has officially swung further to the right than it has ever been since the end of World War II. Under the golds of the presidential palace of Quirinal, in Rome, the new Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, leader of the post-fascist party Fratelli d’Italia, and her ministers were sworn in, in the presence of President Sergio Mattarella. It was to him that each member of the government repeated the traditional oath: “I swear to be faithful to the Republic, to loyally respect the Constitution and the laws, and to exercise my functions in the exclusive interest of the nation “.

Giorgia Meloni, dressed in a very sober black suit, was the first to take the oath, followed by her two Deputy Prime Ministers from the two partner parties in her coalition, Matteo Salvini, the leader of the Antimigrant League, and Antonio Tajani , a senior member of Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party. After the swearing-in ceremony, Giorgia Meloni and her ministers were received by the President for a brief toast. Also present were the relatives of the head of government, in particular her 41-year-old companion, journalist Andrea Giambruno, and their six-year-old daughter Ginevra.

Pledges in Brussels

The list of ministers chosen by Giorgia Meloni, who with Fratelli of Italy won a historic victory in the legislative elections of September 25 with 26% of the vote, reflects his desire to reassure Rome’s partners, worried about coming to power in Italy of a far-right head of government. The appointment to Foreign Affairs, with the title of Deputy Prime Minister, of the former President of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani, was thus immediately hailed on Friday evening by the President of the European People’s Party, the German Manfred Weber, as ” a guarantee of a pro-European and Atlanticist Italy”.

Another pledge given in Brussels, Giancarlo Giorgetti, a representative of the moderate wing of the League, already a minister in the outgoing government of Mario Draghi, who inherits the crucial portfolio of the Economy. The populist Matteo Salvini must content himself with the portfolio of Infrastructures and Transports whereas he coveted that more prestigious of the Interior, which falls to a technocrat.

Of the 24 ministers, only six are women, confined to minor portfolios. The transfer of power between Mario Draghi and Giorgia Meloni will take place on Sunday morning at Palazzo Chigi, the seat of government close to parliament, and will be followed by the first Council of Ministers.