Friday

31st Mar 2023

Podcast

Angst over 'Italexit'

  • Far-right anti-European forces have been able to exploit the procrastination to regain traction. That has renewed anxiety about an 'Italexit' — a scenario where Italy falls out of the Eurozone and even the EU (Photo: Helena Malikova)

Italians were hit hardest when the coronavirus landed in Europe but the European Union was slow to help the country.

The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has apologised — twice.

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The contrition is better late than never, says Marco Zatterin, deputy editor of La Stampa newspaper in Turin.

Even so, far-right anti-European forces have been able to exploit the procrastination to regain traction. That has renewed anxiety about an 'Italexit' — a scenario where Italy falls out of the Eurozone and even the EU.

Throughout the crisis, Zatterin, a former Brussels correspondent and an accomplished author, has led one of two teams at La Stampa that published the newspaper without interruption as the virus tore through Turin and the neighbouring Lombardy region.

The episode also features poems by Ben Ray whose volumes include What I heard on the Last Cassette Player in the World.

Author bio

EU Scream is the progressive politics podcast from Brussels. Produced by James Kanter with graphics by Helena Malikova and music by Lara Natale.

You may also follow via @euscreams subscribe via iTunes, Spotify or from the EU Scream website.

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