Since the beginning of the year, the number of migrants in Italy has increased significantly, and the situation could further deteriorate as the new Italian Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese is consulting with civil-society organisations about how to make the rescue of illegal immigrants more effective.

Chief Security Advisor to the Prime Minister György Bakondi added that Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s government is also preparing to revise the funds intended for supporting the Libyan Coast Guard. This makes it clear that the Italian borders are being opened, he pointed out.

He said an immediate consequence of the measures seeking to open the borders is that the European Union no longer mentions the Italian budget deficit and the country’s presumed problems regarding the state of the rule of law which were much cited during Matteo Salvini’s term as interior minister. It seems that, according to the EU, with the change of government these problems have been solved, he added.

Mr Bakondi also highlighted that, as a solution of some kind, based on the Malta agreement, France and Germany each take in 25 per cent of the migrants arriving in Italy; however, if it transpires that they are not political refugees, they send them back to Italy.

On the programme, the chief security advisor pointed out that, together with the groups which have arrived in the last few days, the number of migrants who have come to Italy since the beginning of the year has risen to 10,000; most recently, the NGO boat Alan Kurdi reached the Italian shores carrying 88 migrants, while a cargo ship put in at an Italian port  with 151 migrants on board.

On Kossuth Radio’s programme Good morning, Hungary, Mr Bakondi said the increasing number of migrants in Italy is raising highly complex political, social and economic issues which do not appear to be solvable any time soon.

(MTI)