Senate debate on the Education Decree is postponed; voting on amendments in committee is proceeding slowly

The debate on the Education Decree in the Senate chamber has been postponed, probably by a week, contrary to what was set out in the timetable. Voting in the Culture Committee has not yet been concluded: so far, just under a hundred amendments have been voted on out of a total of 825 tabled (all those tabled by the opposition have been rejected so far, whilst others have been asked to be reworded) and, according to reports, opinions on the amendments are coming in slowly. Voting will continue throughout the week, starting tomorrow afternoon. Among other things, the decree introduces a cap on the number of foreign pupils per class and a ban on the full-face veil.

It must be passed into law by 29 November, including its passage through the Chamber of Deputies for a second reading. It cannot be ruled out that, should the process be further delayed, the bill could go to the plenary without a mandate for the rapporteur, after which the government would call for a vote of confidence. In the Senate, 90 amendments have been tabled by the majority and over 700 by the centre-left, including three joint amendments which, for example, call for the deletion of Article 13, which provides for the introduction of a cap on the number of foreign pupils – those not born in Italia or who have not attended at least two years of nursery school – in classes from the next academic year.