Latest news with #RiccardoMagi
Local Italy
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Local Italy
Over 1.4 million could claim Italian citizenship if referendum passes, study says
Around 1.42 million non-EU residents would qualify for Italian citizenship should voters approve a pivotal reform of the country's naturalisation laws in the June 8th-9th referendum, Idos said. Under current laws, non-EU nationals need to prove that they've legally lived in the country for a minimum of 10 years to apply for citizenship. The proposed reform would halve the 10-year requirement, meaning that non-EU citizens could apply after five years of legal residency. The study from Idos said that nearly 1.14 million adults and 229,000 minors would immediately qualify for Italian citizenship if the reform were to pass. An additional 55,000 minors could automatically acquire citizenship following their parents' naturalisation, it added. Idos said its estimates were more conservative than earlier projections by referendum campaigners, as they excluded non-EU nationals whose countries do not allow dual citizenship and EU citizens, who can already apply for naturalisation after four years of residency. The research centre also estimated that up to 700,000 non-EU residents would not be able to apply for citizenship under the new rules due to them not meeting current income requirements. To claim citizenship by residency, applicants must have a yearly income of at least €8,263.31 if they're not married and without children, or €11,362.05 if they're married, plus an additional €516 for any child they may have. The above income requirements wouldn't change under the proposed reform. As with all referendums in Italy, the upcoming vote will need a voter turnout of over 50 percent for its result to be valid. If this 'quorum' (or threshold) is not met, the referendum won't be considered valid, whatever its result may be. So far, most Italian news reports have said that it's unlikely that the vote will reach the quorum, noting that voter turnout in referendums has historically been low in Italy. Italian media have also expressed concerns that the abstention rate may be particularly high in the upcoming referendum, as members of the ruling hard-right coalition, which strongly opposes the citizenship reform, have publicly called on supporters to boycott the vote in recent weeks. The ruling coalition's calls to abstain from voting have sparked outrage among the opposition's ranks, with many accusing the government of undermining citizen participation in public life. Riccardo Magi, leader of the centre-left +Europa party, said that voting 'is the foundation of democracy' and 'in a normal country, government institutions should do everything to encourage [it]'. Elly Schlein, leader of the centre-left Democratic Party, said that the government's calls to boycott the vote were a 'betrayal of the constitutional principles that establish voting as a civic duty'.
Russia Today
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
‘Ghost' kicked out of Italian parliament (VIDEO)
An Italian opposition MP was dragged out of a parliamentary session on Wednesday for dressing up as a ghost and condemning what he said are attempts to stifle democratic participation. In a video shared online, Riccardo Magi, a member of the +Europa party, could be seen wearing a white sheet with cut-out eyeholes and the word 'Referendum' written on the fabric. During the session, he shouted from his seat to protest what his party claims are government efforts to discourage voter turnout for several national referendums scheduled for next month. The votes are set to cover issues such as Italy's citizenship requirements for foreigners and repeal certain labor reform provisions. Magi's demonstration was cut short after Lorenzo Fontana, the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, ordered the MP to be escorted out of the session. Parliamentary ushers, together with five security personnel, could then be seen dragging Magi out of the chamber. Possono trascinare il fantasma del Referendum via dall'aula ma non ci fermeranno nel tentare di informare gli solo che il Presidente del Consiglio informi i cittadini sul voto referendario. Non le stiamo chiedendo un favore, è un suo preciso dovere.L'8 e 9… After the incident, Magi uploaded a video of his demonstration on X, writing that 'they can drag the ghost of the Referendum away from the chamber but they will not stop us from trying to inform the Italians.' 'We only ask that the Prime Minister inform citizens about the referendum vote. We are not asking you for a favor, it is your precise duty,' he said, calling on citizens to vote on June 8 and 9 'without fear.'
