A perfect economic storm made Italy ripe for a protest vote
by Larry Elliott Economics editor from on (#3HD7E)
Stagnant wages, slow growth and high unemployment delivered the election's populist uprising
Too little and far too late. Six words that sum up the performance of the Italian economy in the decade since the financial crisis, and that go a long way towards explaining the support for populist parties in the election.
Indeed, if ever there was a country that was ripe for a protest against the political mainstream it was Italy, where four years of modest growth have not been nearly enough to repair the damage caused by a deep slump in 2008-09 and a second two-year recession in 2012-13.
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