iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

If elected president, Marine Le Pen intends to cut off financial aid to Ukraine within six months of her election. The Rassemblement National (RN) leader announced this in an interview with the Financial Times, ahead of next year’s French elections.

Presidential candidate and former leader of the National Rally, Marine Le Pen.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

This morning I am going to post a full translation of the Manifesto of the party of former army general Vannacci: Futuro Nazionale. As one does on a Sunday. FN is challenging Meloni and her coalition by attracting the support of the most radical among their supporters. It can cost her the elections

Leader of Futuro Nazionale, Roberto Vannacci, with television anchor Bruno Vespa.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I am often asked the reasons Meloni would keep Vannacci and his Futuro Nazionale out of the right wing coalition. Haven't they got much in common in ideological terms? Here are five reasons, then:

Former General Vannacci, leader of the extreme right party Futuro Nazionale

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

So, is the next Italian election going to be fought under a different electoral system now that Meloni has managed to see her proposed reform approved by Parliament? Possibly.

Palazzo Montecitorio, where Italy's Lower Chamber convenes

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The UK's path back to the EU: Years 1–5: "Looking at all options". Oh yes. Years 6–7: Arguing over referendum question Years 8–17: Negotiating all opt-outs Year 18: Shocked to find the EU is now the "Democratic Planetary Union", stretches to Canada & South Korea, and has rewritten every treaty.

British PM Andy Burnham looking surprised

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Chasing-Vannacci Watch - new instalment. Sure enough, extreme right leader (former General) Vannacci was hosted by the mother of all current affairs programme today, Bruno Vespa's Porta a Porta (public service broadcaster, RAI).

Anchor of major current affairs programme Porta a Porta (Door to Door), Bruno Vespa, with his guest today, the extreme right leader general Vannacci (wearing a suit)

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

So, what does Salvini do today? At the Pontida gathering of the party he’s just promised to call a party congress within weeks, so that party members can decide to either back him or sack him. He will need approval by the party’s executive for this, but I doubt it will be denied.

The leader of the League and Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Matteo Salvini, speaking at the party gathering in Pontida (Italy) today.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

So Meloni spends the weekend doing what she does best: a little identity politics to keep the base happy and show she hasn't "sold out." Bold action on problems that barely exist, with solutions that cost precisely nothing.

The Italian PM, and leader of Brothers of Italy, Giorgia Meloni

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Another day in the life of the right in Italy, another day of puppet master Vannacci ruling the show… and he's not even in the right-wing coalition. Yet everything continues to gravitate around him, as governing parties push back against his accusations that they have betrayed their electorate...🧵

Roberto Vannacci, leader of the extreme right Italian party Futuro Nazionale.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Stop the boats Rishi should team up with Go home or face arrest Theresa in denouncing how polarising the debate on migration has become

A social media post featuring a portrait of former UK PM Rishi Sunak alongside text and an article link.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Without a pact with Vannacci's Futuro Nazionale, Meloni's coalition is said to be neck and neck with her opponents (Piepoli institute, also note: "unsure/abstainers at 30%...).

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I am often asked why the extreme right appears to be doing so well across Europe today. I have no idea, so l am reading the special two-page article dedicated to Restore Britain by the authoritative The Sunday Times, in search for clues...

Two page article on the extreme right party Restore Britain, The Sunday Time 13/9/26

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Centre-right protestors march on Rome in October 1922, hoping to snatch a few selfies with local admirers

Image from the march on Rome, October 1922.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

I know it, they know it, Meloni knows. The trick for them is to act on it without being seen by the electorate.

Men at work in a northern Italian factory

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

I have clear recollection of when people spontaneously gathered in London on 15 Febr 2003 to oppose impending invasion of Iraq. Statisticians are still studying the statistical impossibility of 2 mill. completely unconnected individuals simultaneously converging on the same spot, & yet it happened.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

3/ Today: Brothers of Italy, offspring of the National Alliance & grandchild of the Social Movement, in ideology, personnel and party organisation. The League, having traded "Northern" for national ambitions. And Forza Italia, still propping a cardboard Berlusconi at the door of its own conferences.

The leaders of the major parties making up the Italian right wing coalition today. From left to right: Matteo Salvini (League), Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy) and Antonio Tajani (Forza Italia).

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

1/ The most open of all open secrets concerning the success of the Italian right wing coalition is boring: continuity. It is the same coalition Silvio Berlusconi assembled three decades ago. Same parties, same architecture. The leaders have changed, the logos have changed. Yet still the same.

The leaders of the main parties making up the Italian right wing coalition in 1994: from left to right: Umberto Bossi (Northern League), Silvio Berlusconi (Forza Italia) and Gianfranco Fini (Italian Social Movement).

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Expect Italy to renew the border suspension with Spain for at least another week (maybe longer) in the next few hours. It's the path of least resistance — keeps them owning "security, migration, Italy-first." No new policy idea in play, so they default to what they think is working politically.

People are escorted from a makeshift beach camp to official shelters across the city after authorities cleared the site, following a mass crossing from Morocco, in Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta, 20 August 2026. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura/File Photo

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

As the next Italian general elections approach (my money is on Spring 2027), the media will start focusing on the question of who can be allied with whom. Common simplistic take will be: “if ONLY coalition A added party X, they would have a good chance of beating coalition B”. Too simplistic. 🧵

The leaders of Italy's largest right and left wing parties: Giorgia Meloni (Brothers of Italy, also PM) and Elly Schlein (Democratic Party).

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

"I wanted to understand how she did it, so she told me she had worked flat out to strengthen her relationship with the European Commission's President, and to make sure her country remained at the very heart of the EU. I returned home thinking what a fool I had been." There, l fixed it.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

So yesterday they dedicate half a page to this candidate in the Milan section of the paper. Most of the interview is about what Burgio tells us he's learned by fulfilling various leadership roles for the army.

Interview with candidate for Mayor of Milan Carmelo Burgio by Corriere della Sera. Burgio runs for the new extreme right party Futuro Nazionale.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

4 weeks left (four!) until Italy lifts passport checks for Spanish flights, and Meloni is dangerously close to getting a cake served right to her face. Somebody call Ceuta and request a crisis, please.... the clock is ticking... 🎂👀

Italian PM Giorgia Meloni in Parliament, looking upset

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

It. govt has reacted to recent events in Ceuta by: 1. Adopting border controls with Spain (i.e. at major airports - a purely symbolic measure meant to weaken PM Sanchez); 2. Pushing for new agreements with Afr. countries for asylum/ migration applications to be processed there - with EU blessing.

Italian and Spanish Heads of Government, Giorgia Meloni and Pedro Sanchez.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Vannacci & his Futuro Nazionale (FN - not by coincidence...) only need 6-7% to try & convince Meloni to welcome them into the right-wing alliance. However, if they overtake Tajani's Forza Italia (& they don't need to go much further to achieve that) the psychological impact will be huge.

SWG voting intention poll for La7 (Italy), dated 27 July 2026. Table comparing estimates for 27/7 vs 20/7, with trend. Fratelli d'Italia 27.0% (was 26.9, +0.1). Partito Democratico 20.9% (21.1, -0.2). Movimento 5 Stelle 12.9% (13.1, -0.2). Forza Italia 7.6% (7.7, -0.1). Futuro Nazionale 6.9% (6.7, +0.2). Verdi e Sinistra 6.5% (6.4, +0.1). Lega 5.7% (5.5, +0.2). Sample: 1,200 residents in Italy, margin of error 2.8%.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

All that pandering and normalising by The Economist, and this is what they get in return... Some food for thought here, clearly.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

Former general Roberto Vannacci has officially co-opted that radical space with his new party, Futuro Nazionale. Unburdened by the actual responsibilities of government, he is far better positioned to play the insurgent.

Retired General Roberto Vannacci, leader of the extreme right party Futuro Nazionale

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Trump repeatedly attacking one of the very few European leaders still willing to validate him is a level of 4D chess my brain simply was not able to process. I need to become smarter.

US President Donald Trump and Italian PM Giorgia Meloni

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Hope Count Binface evacuated his whole family to Alpha Centauri, because Farage’s media allies are about to launch a massive spin campaign proving a bin is never just a bin. Things are going to get ugly. Very ugly. 🗑️🛸

A full-length photo of the satirical British political candidate Count Binface. He wears a dark, textured tunic with matching trousers, black boots, a silver-trimmed cape, and a stylized warrior's belt. His entire head is covered by a gray, cylindrical household rubbish bin modified into a space helmet.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

Fresh attack by Trump, to which Meloni may feel compelled to respond. Image published on Truth Social depicting Italian premier in 'adoration' before the President of the United States.

Italian PM Meloni and US President Trump

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Politics is the only language she has ever spoken, and she remains a remarkably adept operator. She has built her career on turning impossible dilemmas into survivable compromises... Watch this space.

Italian PM Giorgia Meloni and the leader of Futuro Nazionale party Roberto Vannacci.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Andy is getting the warm-up applause every popular figure gets before they actually have to do anything. The minute he starts allocating resources, watch the same pundits flip the script — gushing today, "what happened to him?" by next quarter. Resource allocation is where likability goes to die

Andy Burnham, former Mayor of Manchester and almost certainly the next UK PM.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Rupert Lowe and Roberto Vannacci - the twins: leading personal parties; attracting disproportionate media attention on the basis of limited support; &, more importantly, pushing others further to the right in a futile attempt to disarm them.

Roberto Vannacci, leader of National Future

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Almost 4 years since the right-wing coalition won in Italy and sent Meloni to Palazzo Chigi, the centre-left opposition has produced: checks notes... shuffles papers... looks under the table... checks again all drawers... ... ZERO unitary proposals for a future government. Not a peep.

The leader of Italy's Partito Democratico Schlein talking to the leader of the Five Star Movement Conte.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

Orbán heading to the US — fake beard and sunglasses optional, but Hungarian prosecutors might make them necessary. 🧔🕶️ That trip alone tells you everything about why Meloni's "normalisation" playbook is working — and why Orbán's wasn't. #EuropeanPolitics #HungaryPolitics

Current US President Donald Trump with former Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán (archive pic)

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

When the chips are down Italy plays its key role within the EU and stands by its vital partners in Europe. The identity of the PM (Draghi, Conte, Meloni... you choose...) does not make much of a difference in the end

Italian PM Meloni greeting the French President Macron, at the start of a meeting on 17 April focused on how to reopen the Strait of Hormuz

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Zelensky welcomed in Rome today by both the Italian PM and Italian President. Orbán and Trump who?

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

Eyes on Rome: Giorgia Meloni is entering difficult weeks, as the referendum results dents her image as a "winner".

The Italian PM Giorgia Meloni looking concerned.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

"To truly liberate the British people, we must embrace the sovereign freedom of offshore crypto-whales." Looking forward to Nigel making this exact argument with a straight face and a pint in his hand.

The leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage drinking beer in a pub

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

Very easy prediction right now, given Trump's behaviour and fresh threats to EU allies: Europe's radical right was never united — but the gulf between its pro-Trump/Putin and pro-EU/Ukraine wings is about to get a whole lot wider in weeks to come.

Italian PM Meloni and Hungarian PM Orban.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

So Shabana Mahmood says refused asylum seeker families could get up to £40,000 to leave Britain... Meanwhile at 10 Downing Street, someone’s clearly teaching a masterclass titled: “How to Annoy Literally Everyone in One Easy Policy.” Five stars. No notes. Absolute bipartisan chaos. 🍿

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

Few people in the UK have the vaguest idea whatever a Danish-inspired approach to asylum might mean 🤔. So the point is to reach Copenhagen, be seen visiting what looks like a prison, stress how "tough" Danish govt is...then wait for those Reform UK voters to flock back to Labour in droves. Fools.

Uk's Home Office Minister Mahmood visiting a facility hosting asylum seekers in Denmark.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

In politics you can always move right. But you would always -always- "lurch" left...

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

I doubt Vannacci's moves are going to have much of an impact on Meloni's strategy. If anything, they will convince her to strengthen her "Christian Democratic" alliance with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Forza Italia leader Tajani, to look even more pro-EU, pro-NATO, pro-Ukraine.

Italian PM and leader of Brothers of Italy Meloni with Minister of Foreign Affairs and leader of Forza Italia Tajani.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Remember Gianluigi Paragone of Italexit, the king of the current affair programme, the prince of the talk show who went from interviewer to interviewee after trying to cash in on Euroscepticism for a while? No? Me neither...

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Salvini's problem is not General Vannacci - the 6,754th political nonentity who, in post-90s Italy, is trying to cash in on media exposure by relying on a couple of catchy slogans & free publicity by public service broadcaster RAI. There have been many before him, also (but not only) on the right.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

And here it is (from La Stampa): National Future.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

In further news concerning the normalisation of the extreme right, Matteo Salvini has hosted Tommy Robinson at Italy's Ministery of Transport and infrastructure today. Almost as if he were some sort of foreign dignitary.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

What a week this has been on the international stage, and it's only Wednesday... Something that never changes, though, no matter how crazy Trump gets & how many drones Putin sends out, is how much Salvini influences Meloni's security & foreign policy decisions: it's zero, nada, minus 5.

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Professor Daniele Albertazzi @dralbertazziuk.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Of course he won't be imposing the extra tariffs after all. Of course.

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