Italy's tilt to the far-right: EU braced for Giorgia Meloni

The three parties also want to revise Italy’s €200 billion EU Covid recovery plan - in agreement with the EU - to put more resources into energy diversification and help consumers with higher energy prices. "This programme would be expensive to implement, and a loose fiscal policy would lead to higher borrowing costs for Italy and perhaps a financial crisis," says Luigi Scazzieri, who is a senior research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER).

"Meloni is aware of the risks of appearing spendthrift, and is trying to stress that she is fiscally responsible."

..."Because money from the EU’s Recovery Fund is disbursed in tranches and linked to meeting reform milestones, a right-wing government would have a strong incentive to continue with Draghi’s reforms," says Scazzieri.

"Even so, it may be difficult to meet all the targets, and there could be substantial disagreements between the Italian government and the European Commission over whether milestones have been met."