Mario Draghi gives Italy another chance

ITALY IS BIG enough to break Europe. Some countries, such as Greece or Portugal, are highly indebted but their fellow Europeans can bail them out, if necessary. Others, like France, Spain or indeed Germany, have large debts in absolute terms, but thanks to the size of their economies and a decent record of growth they can cope without spooking the markets. Only Italy has the triple whammy: a big debt stock in both relative and absolute terms, plus an economy that was stagnant even before covid-19 struck. The arrival of Mario Draghi, sworn in as Italy’s prime minister on February 13th (see ), offers some hope that Europe’s sick man may get a vital healing shot.Mr Draghi, an ex-boss of the European Central Bank, is the latest in a long line of technocrats to be installed in the prime minister’s office. That is hardly ideal. Unelected heads of government are in principle a snub to democracy. They are often bad at communicating with the public. Their elevation can play into the hands of populists, who will always claim that the elites are conspiring to do down the masses. When the prime minister in question is a former international banker, the demagogic slogans practically write themselves.