At last November’s Cop27 summit in Egypt, Rishi Sunak made a point of carving out time for a chat with Europe’s other newly appointed prime minister, Giorgia Meloni. For both leaders there was something to gain from this impromptu bilateral. As the small-boats controversy continued to grab headlines, Mr Sunak hoped to emulate Ms Meloni’s success in turning irregular migration into a profitable dividing line with the left. For her part, Ms Meloni needed her radical-right party, which has neo-fascist roots, to be seen as part of the conservative mainstream.
This week there will be another chance to exchange notes, as Ms Meloni comes to London on a two-day visit. Six months on, the Italian leader’s normalisation project has been disturbingly successful. Abroad, the hostile headlines have largely disappeared, including in the liberal media. Domestically, her poll ratings, and those of her party, are higher than at the autumn election. In some rightwing circles, Ms Meloni has begun to be seen as a potential leader of a post-Merkel conservative axis in European politics.
