Rome, May 29, 2025 – Italy’s top political leaders have launched a blistering attack on the Council of Europe (CoE). They dismiss its claims of racial profiling by Italian police as baseless, ideological, and insulting.
The backlash follows a report issued Wednesday by the CoE’s Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), which urged Italy to investigate allegations of racial profiling by law enforcement. The response from Rome was swift and fierce.
Deputy Premier and League leader Matteo Salvini dismissed the report outright, branding the CoE a “useless body” that produces “bullshit.”
“At the Council of Europe they should be ashamed,” Salvini said Thursday. “It’s another useless body that costs Italian and European citizens money to produce bullshit in exchange, because the idea of a racist Italian police is bullshit, as they say in Oxford.”
Salvini’s remarks followed similar reactions from other senior members of Italy’s right-wing coalition government. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the accusations “simply shameful,” rejecting the notion that Italian police act with racial bias.
“Everyone knows the numerous episodes in which law enforcement officers are attacked, often by illegal immigrants, while carrying out their duties with courage, dedication and respect for the law,” Meloni wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Deputy Premier Antonio Tajani of Forza Italia said the CoE’s claims were “obscure and false”. Meanwhile, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi called them “unacceptable.”
Political unity against international criticism
The increasingly rare show of unity among leaders from the League, Brothers of Italy (FdI), and Forza Italia reflects growing frustration in Rome with what they see as unfair external interference. This is not the first time Italian authorities have clashed with European institutions over issues of migration and security.
On Wednesday, the Council of Europe had called on Italy to investigate and address reports of discriminatory practices within its police forces. It particularly referenced migrants and people of African descent. The CoE’s ECRI said evidence suggested a pattern of racial profiling that needed to be addressed. It recommended better training, oversight, and transparency.
The Italian government has rejected the claims entirely and defended its law enforcement agencies as professional and non-discriminatory.
