Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has proposed legislation to limit foreign students in classrooms and ban face-covering garments in schools to promote integration and preserve cultural identity.
On September 20, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni unveiled plans to introduce legislation aimed at capping the number of foreign students in Italian classrooms and prohibiting face-covering garments, such as burqas and niqabs, in schools. The conservative leader emphasized that these measures are designed to foster integration, maintain Italian cultural identity, and ensure that native children do not feel marginalized in their own classrooms.
“There’s no way that in an Italian classroom, the ones who feel marginalized are Italian children because they have become a minority,” Meloni stated during a speech to Gioventù Nazionale, the youth wing of her conservative Brothers of Italy party, in Rome. Her remarks reflect a growing concern about the integration of foreign students within the Italian education system.
The proposed legislation includes specific limits on the number of non-Italian students allowed in individual classrooms to prevent heavy concentrations in certain districts. While Meloni did not disclose the exact cap, she mentioned that the government would also mandate Italian-language lessons for parents of foreign pupils who face challenges in integrating into the educational environment.
“For us, anyone who comes to Italy and wants to build their future here must learn our language, understand our culture, and respect our rules,” Meloni asserted, as reported by The Associated Press. “It is the only serious way to welcome them.”
According to data from Italy’s Education Ministry, students without Italian citizenship represent approximately 11.6% of school enrollment nationwide. Under current Italian law, children born to foreign parents do not automatically acquire citizenship at birth and must wait until they are 18 years old to apply.
Meloni further argued that high concentrations of non-native speakers can negatively impact the learning process for all students involved. “If in a classroom there is only one child who doesn’t understand Italian, it is possible that that child will manage, with the help of his peers and teachers, to learn the language and integrate fast,” she explained. “But if these children are many, or even the majority, that’s not integration anymore, that’s abandonment.”
The proposed legislation also specifically targets religious face coverings, banning burqas and niqabs in educational institutions while allowing other forms of Islamic dress, such as the hijab. In a series of posts on X, the Brothers of Italy party reiterated Meloni’s message, stating, “Those who choose to build their future in Italy must learn our language, know our culture, and respect our rules.” They emphasized that school should be attended with one’s face uncovered, asserting that no tradition should compel a young woman to hide herself.
A subsequent post added, “Limit on the number of foreign students in classrooms, obligation for parents of pupils with serious integration difficulties to learn Italian, and ban on burqas and niqabs in educational institutions.” The party underscored that integration is achieved through knowledge of the Italian language, respect for the country’s rules, and the protection of cultural identity.
Several European countries, including France and Belgium, have previously enacted bans on face coverings in public spaces, although the enforcement and legal frameworks for these bans vary. The proposed Italian legislation is expected to be reviewed by Italy’s Council of Ministers before being forwarded to Parliament for consideration.
Meloni, who has led the Brothers of Italy party since 2014 and served as president of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party from 2020 to 2025, has been in power since 2022. Her administration recently surpassed previous records set by Silvio Berlusconi, becoming the longest-serving uninterrupted government in modern Italian history.
As discussions around the proposed measures continue, the implications for Italy’s educational landscape and cultural integration remain a focal point of national debate, according to Fox News.