Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella at the swearing-in ceremony in Rome (Photo: Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters) |
Meloni, head of the nationalist Brothers of Italy, swept to victory in an election last month in alliance with Forza Italia and League Parties. On Friday, President Sergio Mattarella gave her the mandate to govern and form a new cabinet.
Giorgia Meloni’s new cabinet includes 24 ministers, one more than the government of outgoing Premier Mario Draghi. Six of them are women.
Several ministries will change name under new centre-right administration. The economic development ministry will become the business and Made in Italy ministry. The ecological transition ministry will be called environment and energy security. The agricultural polices ministry changes to the ministry of agriculture and food sovereignty.
Meloni’s new cabinet is the first far right-led government since the end of World War II. The new Prime Minister sworn in as Italy is facing a number of challenges, including high inflation, public debt, energy crisis, and Ukraine conflicts.
Passing the 2023 budget will be Meloni’s government's first challenge, as it will have to will be submitted to the European Commission for approval and must be approved by both houses of the Italian parliament by end-December 2022.