“Citizenship laws in Italy are excellent and also very inclusive,” Meloni said as the country prepared for a key vote on reducing the current 10-year residency requirement for naturalisation claims to five years.
“I’m completely against” the proposed citizenship reform, she added, noting that Italy has long been “among the European countries that grant the highest number of citizenships every year".
READ ALSO: FACT CHECK: Does Italy grant more citizenships than any other EU country?
The Italian premier’s words came three days after she said she would go to her polling station but not vote in any of the June 8th-9th referendums, including the citizenship vote, sparking cries of outrage among members of the opposition.
Meloni defended her decision to abstain from voting on Thursday, saying that abstention was “a right for everyone”.
"I don’t agree with the subjects of the referendums and, as has always been the case in the nation’s history, when you don't agree, abstention is also an option," she said.
Meloni’s comments came after multiple members of her government, which strongly opposes the proposed labour and citizenship reforms, publicly called on supporters to boycott the upcoming vote.
READ ALSO: 'Stay home': Italy’s government boycotts 'dangerous' citizenship vote
Under Italy’s voting laws, referendums must meet a voter turnout (or quorum) of over 50 percent for their results to be considered valid. If this threshold is not met, the results are automatically void, regardless of the outcome.
Senate Speaker Ignazio La Russa said in late May he would "campaign to ensure that people stay home" on polling day to prevent the referendums from reaching the required turnout.
MP Grazia Di Maggio also encouraged abstention, saying that “Italians will have better things to do [than voting] on June 8th and 9th”.
The government’s attempts to boycott the upcoming referendums have prompted vehement reactions from opposition members.
The leader of the centrist +Europa party, Riccardo Magi, condemned the hard-right coalition's “coordinated strategy” to sabotage the referendums, saying it showed “a lack of awareness of the institutions and role they hold”.
Italy needs “a democratic rebellion” to fight abstentionism, he added.
Find all the latest news updates, practical guides and more in The Local's Italian citizenship section.
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