'The Ebb and Flow' of Euroscepticism in Italy

This paper analyses the 'ebb and flow' of party-based and popular euroscepticism in Italy, arguing that, when examined over a long period of time, euroscepticism has shifted from left to right. Moreover, whereas party-based euroscepticism has been transformed from ideological to strategic, popular euroscepticism seems to be better explained by economic reasons rather than political ones. The empirical material is organised in three periods, on the basis of the turning points in the evolution of euroscepticism in Italy: from 1957 to the late 1960s; from the early 1970s to the end of the so-called 'First Republic' in the early 1990s; and the 'Second Republic'.