(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 17 - Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday told the Lower House that a directive regarding repatriations and the concept of safe countries could not be postponed any longer and called for the implementation as soon as possible of a new Pact on immigration and asylum.
    "We consider as undelayable a review of the directive on repatriations and of the concept of safe country, as we consider important to move up as much as possible what has been provided for by the new Pact on immigration and asylum, also with the aim of finally shedding light on an issue that was the object of recent judicial measures of an ideological flavour which, if confirmed in their basic philosophy by the EU Court of Justice, would risk compromising, at least until new EU rules come into force in 2026, the repatriation policies of all member states, a concerning and unacceptable perspective that it is necessary to prevent with determination", said Meloni.
    Speaking about the appointment to the European Commission of Italy's Raffaele Fitto as an executive vice president with the brief for cohesion and the NRRP, Meloni said "it is not only an honorary title but a concrete tool that will allow to supervise and coordinate strategic sectors like agriculture, fishing, the economy of the sea, social housing: Italian sensibility can contribute to a pragmatic approach, overcoming the ideological and dogmatic one" of the past few years. (ANSA).