The duality of the EU

The differences between North and South

Abstract

In this article, there would be a comparison between Northern Europe and Southern Europe based on economy, politics and their position for asylum and immigration, this article contains information about Italy and The Netherlands and a comparison drawn between these two countries.

Italy 

The analysis of the government will come down to their impact on European Politics. The European Parliament defines the political system of Italy as a parliament with a prime minister who is the head of government. The president is the head of state and appoints the prime-minister, The Parliament is composed of 2 houses: The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. The country is subdivided into 20 regions. 5 of these have a special autonomous status, enabling them to pass legislation on some local matters. More recently, Lighthouse Europe said that Italy’s government was labeled as a game changer for European politics. 

Italy's political change

Recently, Italy’s Prime Minister Georgia Meloni has been very vocal about the European Union, pushing for greater influence.  Le Monde says that Georgia Meloni’s far-right party is on track to overtake its centrist rival which is linked to France’s Emmanuel Macron.

According to Nathalie Tocci and Leo Goretti, Georgia Meloni wants  to play a protagonist role. An example that provides that Meloni wants a protagonist role is the campaign of FDL for 2022’s election. The emphasis was placed on the need for Italy to return as a protagonist in Europe, and to “relaunch the system of European integration, for a Europe of homelands, founded on people’s interests. Also, in her inaugural address to the Chamber of Deputies, Meloni stressed the desire for Italy to stand with “head high” in Europe. 

In its first months of government, the Meloni administration adopted a Eurorealist stance in line with that of previous centre-right governments from the early 2000s. Moreover, the same source states that one year after the establishment of Georgia Meloni’s government, dark clouds are gathering between the relations of Italy and the EU. In terms of policy, Rome faces increasing challenges that were denied in the past: migration and economy. 

As mentioned by Nathalie Tocci and Leo Goretti in terms of migration, the Union has systematically failed to address the migration issue in a holistic way, and has tried to shift the responsibility onto countries of origin and transit. A point that explains that Meloni has failed in terms of migration is the agreement between EU and Tunisia,  a sign of its failure is that after 8 weeks of the agreement, the percentage of arrivals from North Africa has increased to 60. Another important fact is that Meloni has its focus on the external dimension of EU migration policies because, while migration flows are on the rise under her government, Italy so far has failed to achieve anything on the internal dimension. 

The area of economy also looks troubled, having very little fiscal room for manoeuvre, Italy is unable to benefit from any relaxation of state aid rules; hence, Rome supported the establishment of a new European sovereignty fund as the backbone for an EU-wide industrial policy. 

What is the Superbonus 110 tax credit?

Based on  a working paper done by LeapLuiss,  Superbonus was designed to achieve specific policy objectives related to energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, and seismic safety’ The Superbonus scheme is intended to benefit homeowners and residential property owners. Since Italy was really affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Italian government in 2020 came up with the Superbonus 110%. The economy of Italy recently has been driven by investments which have risen following the introduction of the ‘Superbonus 110 tax credit’ in 2020. This tax allowed the energy-efficiency-related costs to improve. Superbonus 110 helped the economy of Italy to rise a lot since its core points were based on the fall of energy prices which have led to desinflation. 

In Italy there is still a tight labour market, but it does support wage increases. 

The Netherlands 

According to the European Parliament, the Netherlands is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. This means that the prime minister is the head of government and the monarch is the head of state. The council of ministers holds the executive power. The Netherlands is divided into 12 provinces and 342 different municipalities.

More recently, the elections that were in the Netherlands were won by the far-right party PVV which ultimately brought more attention to this country recently due to the policies that this party supports, specifically by being against the muslim community in the Netherlands 

In an article from Reuters, it is explained what the new government tries to achieve: the coalition aims to have the strictest admittance policy for asylum seekers among EU countries. Besides doing this, the Netherlands also says that it will request an opt out of common EU rules for migration. 

Upcoming changes for the Dutch

Border controls will be intensified and admittance procedures will be shorter and stricter. While foreigners who have already been denied asylum in another EU country, it will be sent away immediately. Family reunifications will be limited, and refugees and asylum seekers will no longer be prioritised for housing, and facilities for immigrants will be made more basic. Within the EU, the government will strive for stricter outside border controls and deal with non-European countries to take in migrants. Labour migration will be curbed, as well as the flow of foreign students to Dutch universities. Workers from outside the EU who do not have specific knowledge or expertise will need a work permit and recruiting agencies will face stricter regulation, while knowledge workers will have to meet higher standards.

The Dutch will also strive to limit free movement for people from countries joining the European Union in the future.