Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni has said that her government was prepared to make changes to a contested plan offering financial rewards to lawyers who help with migrants’ repatriations, even as she stood by the broader idea.
Under draft legislation set to be approved by parliament this week, lawyers assisting migrants with voluntary repatriation would receive state money, but only if the procedure is successfully completed.
Meloni’s ruling coalition has earmarked €246,000 (£214,000) for the incentive this year, with funding almost doubling for 2027 and 2028. Lawyers who assist their foreign clients in accepting voluntary repatriation will receive a bonus, but only once the individual has returned to their country of origin. The bill does not stipulate the bonus amount but rough calculations by the Italian press equate it to about €615. The security bill also has a measure removing access to state-funded legal aid when challenging deportation orders.
The measure has been denounced as unconstitutional by lawyers and judges’ associations, and has raised concerns from the country’s President Sergio Mattarella, who can refuse to sign legislation on constitutional grounds.
Italy’s national bar council said in a statement that it was never informed about the measure and has urged parliament to scrap it. UCPI, which represents criminal lawyers, said that the measure was “incompatible” with Italy’s constitution, adding that lawyers must not be paid to obtain an outcome desired by the state and must instead assist their clients “in full freedom and independence.” ANM, the magistrates’ union, said that it was “dismayed” by the measure, warning that offering financial incentives linked to the outcome of migrant repatriation procedures risked undermining effective judicial protection.
There has also been an angry response from the opposition. Riccardo Magi, leader of the leftwing Più Europa (More Europe) party, said the bonus was “basically a wild west-style bounty” in which “rights are trampled on and those who should protect the rights of foreign citizens are financially incentivised not to do so.” He described the security decree as “one step away from Trump’s ICE”, referring to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Debora Serracchiani of the Democratic party said the bonus, alongside the loss of legal aid for lawyers assisting clients in appealing against deportation orders, was a “disgraceful” regulation that “undermines the very dignity of professionals.” She added, “This is yet another decree that only serves to repress and strip away rights.”
Valentina D’Orso, of the Five Star Movement, accused the government of trying to “exploit lawyers by using them as a means to implement its immigration policies.”
Meloni, who has headed a right-wing coalition in power since 2022, acknowledged that her government had received “technical observations” on the bill from the presidency and lawyers, which would be taken into account in a separate piece of legislation.
“We’re bringing together some technical considerations from the president’s office and from lawyers regarding the security decree, which I don’t consider a mess. We’ll transform those considerations into an ad hoc measure, because there was no time left before the decree was converted to amend the law.
Giorgia Meloni
However, reports note that the measure is part of a so-called Security Decree which must receive final approval by the lower house of parliament by April 25, or else lapse. If it were amended, the upper Senate would also have to vote on it.
The security bill also envisages, among other things, preventive detention of known or suspected troublemakers ahead of demonstrations, and it contains measures to beef up security and public safety and protect police.
No Time Margins To Correct Decree
Moreover, Meloni said, “There are no time margins … to correct the decree,” without elaborating on future amendments. “We are going ahead with rules that we consider to be of absolute common sense,” she added.
She also denied reports that the government was set to scrap this provision completely. “But the measure remains, because it’s absolutely a common-sense measure, and, frankly, I’m surprised by what I’ve heard from the opposition in recent days,” she said.
“I’m not entirely clear on why, if we recognize free legal aid for lawyers assisting migrants who appeal against expulsion orders, we shouldn’t recognize the work of professionals who assist migrants when they voluntarily choose to be repatriated. I think we agree about assisted voluntary repatriation.
“It’s a tool that Europe is asking us to intensify, it’s a tool we’re continuing to implement, and a tool we’re working to strengthen. I thought we agreed on this at least.”
Giorgia Meloni
She asserted that the bill will move forward. “Now I find out we don’t even agree on assisted voluntary repatriation anymore,” she said, adding, “But we’ll keep moving forward anyway.”
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