Italians are not in favour of following in Britain's footsteps, with 62 percent saying leaving the European Union would not be a good idea, according to a report released on Friday by Italian research institute Censis.
The 2019 edition of the annual poll found 25 percent of Italians would be in favour of their country leaving the EU bloc.
Italy's membership of the EU is not currently a major topic of discussion within the country, and an “Italexit” referendum is not on the cards despite what is implied by reports in some UK newspapers.
In recent years the issue of Italy's European Union membership was regularly brought up by eurosceptic populist parties, including the Five Star Movement and the League.
However, polls have repeatedly found little appetite among Italians for a referendum on the issue, and the topic doesn't currently get much attention in Italian media or public life.
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And,all but the most ardently Eurosceptic Italian politicians now seem to have either changed their minds or gone quiet on the issue.
The M5S began backing the country's membership of the EU in 2017, changing tack after years of anti-European rhetoric, and then in 2018 decided they were also in favour of the single currency after all, despite previously blaming it for the country's economic woes.
Membership of the Euro is a more frequently-discussed issue in Italy, but again there is little interest in getting rid of the single currency.
The Censis poll found that 24 percent of Italians think reverting back to the Lira is a good idea. However the majority, 61 percent, said they were against that idea.
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Almost half, 48 percent, are against bringing back customs checks within the EU, as they believe it would hamper the free movement of people and goods, while 32 percent would like the border controls back.
Worryingly, the report also said that widespread anxiety among Italians has led to “increasing antidemocratic impulses.”
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