Italy's divisive Meloni sets tone on EU migration file

"Von der Leyen understands where the political winds are blowing," said political analyst Luigi Scazzieri of the Centre for European Reform think-tank.

..."Macron was an oversized figure on the European stage, and now France has been very much cut down to size," said Scazzieri.

...Fitto's commission portfolio was not "as powerful as his title suggests," Scazzieri said, and while Meloni was authoritative on migration the same was not true in other domains.

On other dossiers such as the economy, he pointed out that Italy "needs the European Commission on board" to secure continued EU funding.

"Therefore it's just much less influential," he said.