ROME — Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced two legislative proposals that would bar face coverings in Italian schools and impose a statutory cap on the number of foreign students in each classroom, according to reporting by The Gateway Pundit. The measures, which Meloni said would soon go before the Italian cabinet, were unveiled Sunday during a speech at Fenix, an annual gathering organized by the youth wing of her right-wing Brothers of Italy party.
“Italian children cannot feel like a minority in the classroom,” Meloni said, per the outlet. She added that when the share of students who do not understand the language of instruction grows too large, “that is no longer integration; that is neglect.”
The proposal had already been floated in 2025, when Meloni’s party described it as a response to what it called Islamic separatism. The announcement comes a little more than a year before Italy’s next general election, a period in which the prime minister has been repositioning herself toward the right after, in the outlet’s framing, drifting toward the political center during much of her mandate. She now faces more competition for right-wing votes, including from a new party founded by a former general.
What the package would do
According to the reporting, the package includes three main elements. The first is a ban on burqas and niqabs in schools. The second would require parents of pupils facing “serious difficulties integrating” into the national school system to learn Italian. The third would place a limit on the number of places available to foreign pupils.
The proposed amendment would also create a new criminal offense of forcing someone to conceal their face, punishable by one to two years in prison and fines ranging from €10,000 to €30,000. Those convicted under the provision would additionally be barred from obtaining Italian citizenship.
If Italy adopts a statutory maximum for foreign pupils in each class, it would become the first European country to do so, according to the proposal. Italy already operates under a 30 percent limit on non-Italian pupils, established through a 2010 ministerial circular issued by then-Education Minister Mariastella Gelmini. That cap has frequently gone unenforced because of local demographic conditions and a lack of flexibility, particularly in urban outskirts.
The reported measures would place Italy alongside several other European countries that have already restricted face coverings. France and Belgium ban such coverings in public places, and Austria has introduced restrictions in schools.
Political context
The announcement fits a broader pattern for Meloni, who has sought to shore up her right flank ahead of the next election while maintaining her governing coalition. The Fenix event, organized by the youth division of Brothers of Italy, has become a venue for the party to signal its priorities to its base.
The scale of the issue, as framed by the outlet, is significant: nearly a million undocumented immigrants are enrolled in Italian schools, representing more than 10 percent of the student population. That figure underscores the demographic pressures that the proposed measures are intended to address, according to supporters of the plan.
Meloni’s move also comes amid her broader engagement with European counterparts on immigration policy. She and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen have jointly vowed to protect Europe’s Christian cultural heritage and to unite against illegal immigration.
It remains unclear when the cabinet will formally consider the package, or how it would be implemented in practice given the existing 30 percent cap that has proven difficult to enforce. The proposals are likely to face debate in Italy’s parliament and among education officials, who would be responsible for applying any new classroom limits.
Source: www.thegatewaypundit.com — https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/09/new-meloni-ban-burqas-niqabs-italian-schools-restrict/