Raffaele Fitto, a member of Italy’s far-right ruling party, was today appointed to a top job in the next European Commission; a controversial move that has angered centrist and left-wing groups.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen has put forward Fitto as one of six executive vice presidents who will serve as her key aides on the EU’s executive body.
She said the 55-year-old would be in charge of Italy’s “solidarity and reform”. She said the selection reflected Italy’s importance in the 27-nation bloc.
“He will be responsible for the portfolios relating to cohesion policy, regional development and cities,” von der Leyen told a press conference in Strasbourg.
Seen as a tribute to the gains made by far-right parties in European elections in June, the appointment was hailed by Rome as proof of its influence within the EU.
“This is an important recognition that confirms our nation’s new central role in the EU. Italy is finally back as a protagonist in Europe,” Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on X.
Fitto, currently Italy’s minister for European affairs, is well known in Brussels and is considered one of the more moderate faces of the Meloni government.
But as a member of his post-fascist Brothers of Italy party – which once called for Rome to exit the eurozone – his selection for such a powerful post has caused an uproar among EU lawmakers.
The Greens’ David Cormand said it represented “the normalisation of the far right in European institutions”.
And Iratxe Garcia Perez, head of the Socialists and Democrats group, said Fitto would have to prove his commitment to European values during a potentially stormy confirmation hearing before parliament.
French centrist Valerie Hayer had described the prospect of Fitto’s appointment as “unsustainable” — though on Tuesday she struck a more pragmatic tone, vowing to be “extremely vigilant” over his commitment to European values.
Von der Leyen was re-elected to a second term with votes from the centre and left, as well as her centre-right European People’s Party, which is the largest group in the EU parliament.
But Meloni’s far-right European Conservatives and Reformists group ignored him.
“Italy is a very important country and one of our founding members, and that must be reflected in our selection,” von der Leyen said of Fitto’s nomination.
Fitto was elected to the European Parliament three times before joining Meloni’s administration in 2022, where he was tasked with managing Italy’s part of the EU’s massive post-Covid recovery plan.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)