Italy approves law allowing addicted inmates to serve sentences in rehab facilities

WEB DESK: Italy’s parliament has approved a new law that could allow thousands of prisoners struggling with drug or alcohol addiction to serve their sentences outside prisons while undergoing rehabilitation programmes.

The move comes as Italy’s prisons face severe overcrowding, operating at around 140 per cent capacity, according to prisoners’ rights group Antigone. The country has one of the highest overcrowding rates in the European Union, alongside France.

Justice Minister Carlo Nordio said the measure could benefit more than 10,000 inmates with drug addictions from Italy’s prison population of nearly 65,000. Around 3,700 prisoners with alcohol-related issues may also qualify under the new law, according to parliamentary data.

However, Antigone questioned the expected figures, saying inmates would need to meet several conditions before being released, while the funding allocated under the law would support fewer than 600 rehabilitation placements.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the legislation as “a victory on several fronts,” saying it would ease pressure on prisons and help people with addictions break away from criminal behaviour.

Meloni’s government has maintained a strict stance on crime and immigration, and last year announced plans to add 15,000 new prison spaces, though no additional capacity has been created so far.

The prison reform comes at a politically sensitive time for Meloni, with national elections approaching next year. The far-right opposition party Futuro Nazionale has criticised the move, accusing the government of being too lenient on crime and immigration.

The party, founded this year by former army general Roberto Vannacci, has gained support in opinion polls and challenged parties within Meloni’s ruling coalition. It voted against the prison reform bill in parliament.