Rome: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced on Sunday, 20 September 2026, that her government will soon present draft legislation to ban full-face veils in schools and cap the proportion of foreign pupils allowed in individual classrooms. Speaking at an annual youth event organised by her governing Brothers of Italy party, Meloni outlined a series of measures intended to address integration challenges and enforce educational standards. According to reporting by Reuters, the proposed bill will also require foreign parents whose children face severe integration difficulties within the Italian school system to learn the Italian language.

Classroom Caps and Language Mandates

Under the upcoming cabinet proposal, the Italian government seeks to legally restrict the number of non-citizen pupils permitted in a single class to ensure effective language acquisition. Addressing attendees, Meloni argued that while a solitary non-Italian speaker can easily integrate with support from peers and teachers, large concentrations of non-native speakers in classrooms lead to educational "neglect" rather than genuine social integration. Data published by the ISMU Foundation reveals that foreign students currently account for 11.6 per cent of total enrolment in Italian schools, representing nearly 12 out of every 100 pupils. Although Meloni confirmed the upcoming cabinet submission, she did not specify the precise numerical threshold to be applied to classroom compositions.

Ban on Face Coverings in Schools

In addition to classroom quotas, the proposed legislative package introduces an explicit prohibition against face-covering religious garments, specifically the burqa and niqab, inside educational institutions. Meloni backed her party's ideological stance on integration by asserting that pupils must attend school with uncovered faces, maintaining that cultural traditions cannot justify the concealment of young women in public spaces. The measure forms part of a broader policy push by Meloni's right-wing administration to reinforce national identity and social cohesion amidst ongoing migration pressures across the central Mediterranean region.