Italy ministers agree to ban burqa and niqab in school and cap foreigners in class

ByDavide Ghiglione in Rome.

Key points

• Non-Italian citizens create up 11.6% of pupils in Italy's schools, according to the research institution Fondazione ISMU.
• The leader of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), Elly Schlein, called the plan propaganda and impossible to implement.
• Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the measures as "common-sense tools that do not divide but really help to integrate".
• The 30% limit on pupils who speak limited Italian will cover separate stages of education differently.
• This person introduced a separate package of measures on what he called "political Islam" on Wednesday, accused Vannacci of "continually voting against the government".

In practice, the Italian administration has approved a ban on the burqa and niqab in schools, along with a limit on the share of pupils who speak little Italian in any one class.

In practice, a 30% cap will be imposed on children without Italian citizenship or poor knowledge of the Italian language in the first year of primary, middle and high school.

Opposition parties accuse the administration of pandering to the policies of the hard-right Futuro Nazionale party, ahead of a general election next year.

While he has sought to frame the ban on the niqab and burqa as a matter of gender equality, education Minister Giuseppe Valditara has remarked the limit is "purely linguistic" rather than one of citizenship.

"You must go to school with your face uncovered, " Meloni remarked while announcing the aims on Sunday, adding that no-one could decide that a young woman should hide herself in the name of tradition.

There were a number of drafts of the decree ahead of Thursday's council of ministers gathering, nevertheless the core details were clear.

Meanwhile, the veil ban would apply to the burqa and niqab, but not the hijab. It leaves the face visible.

Notably, the niqab is a veil for the face that leaves the area around the eyes clear. Nevertheless, it may be worn with a separate eye veil. It is worn with an accompanying headscarf.

Notably, the burka is a one-piece veil that covers the face and body. Often there is a mesh screen around the eyes to see through.

For context, the 30% limit on pupils who speak limited Italian will cover separate stages of education differently.

In primary schools, it would cover non-Italian citizens who have either not been born in Italy or who have not attended at least two years of nursery school.

In lower- and upper- secondary schools, it would cover pupils without Italian citizenship who have not successfully completed at least three years in the Italian school system.

Local school offices would be asked to spread pupils with little Italian language skills more evenly among nearby schools. Where that is not feasible, exemptions would apply, with extra Italian teaching. The aim was to avoid "ghetto classes", the education minister explained.

For context, the draft additionally goes further on parents, according to the Ansa news agency. Schools would have to report to social services cases in which persistent language barriers among those with parental responsibility hinder a child's integration. Free Italian courses would be offered.

Meanwhile, the measure is a decree law, meaning it can take effect immediately, but must be ratified by parliament within 60 days.

Italy already has guidance on Italian language at schools. A 2010 ministerial notice under then-Education Minister Mariastella Gelmini set a 30% limit "as a rule" on pupils without Italian citizenship. The new decree puts the limit into law.

For context, the political opposition notes the plan is as much concerning politics as schools.

Opponents accuse Meloni of pandering to Roberto Vannacci, a retired military general who leads the hard-right Futuro Nazionale party and is seen as a threat to the governing coalition's right flank.

For context, the leader of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), Elly Schlein, called the plan propaganda and impossible to implement. PD deputy and chamber vice-president Anna Ascani additionally accused the administration of propaganda at the expense of schoolchildren.

Valditara, speaking by video link from New York at a press conference rejected the charge.

"We are not chasing Vannacci; if anything, he is chasing us, " he remarked.

Vannacci remarked he agreed with the measures, but they should have come years ago.

In practice, the League's Matteo Salvini. This person introduced a separate package of measures on what he called "political Islam" on Wednesday, accused Vannacci of "continually voting against the government".

Salvini remarked he hoped Futuro Nazionale would back the League's new proposals.

In short, italy ministers agree to ban burqa and niqab in school and cap is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.