Italy’s populists are more dangerous than they seem

ITALY has gone without a government for more than two months. That is no great shock. At elections on March 4th, Italians deserted mainstream parties and backed radical populist ones whose leaders have never had to haggle to form a coalition. The surprise has been the belated reaction of the financial markets, which this week suddenly woke up to the looming threat. The men who, as went to press, were on the verge of taking power in Italy cannot be trusted to run it.One reason for the delay—and for general concern—is that the populist parties that won the most votes have conflicting policies. The far-right Northern League promised a flat tax rate of 15%, which would lower revenues. The Five Star Movement (M5S), which claims to transcend left-right divisions, promised a universal basic income of €780 ($920) per month, which would require huge outlays. Bridging the gap between these two parties, in office as well as in the coalition talks, would be hard for the most charming and seasoned politicians, let alone the League’s firebrand of a leader, Matteo Salvini (pictured, left), and M5S’s 31-year-old head, Luigi Di Maio (right).