Drifting Apart, or Converging Once-Again? the Multi-Level Politics of Minimum Income in Italy and Spain

The absence of a minimum income scheme (MIS) was a key feature of the Southern European Model. In the past twenty years, however, countries in this cluster have witnessed major changes. After several failed attempts, Italy has recently introduced a peculiar – categorical and extremely residual – national anti-poverty scheme. Conversely, in Spain - despite proposals launched by trade unions and leftist parties - a national scheme was never established. Opposite policy trajectories can interestingly be detected at the sub-national level as well. In Spain, all regions have introduced MIS to the point that they currently cover the whole national territory, whereas in Italy we observe an inconsistent and somehow contradictory evolution: only a number of regions introduced MIS which were often subsequently eliminated.

Against this background, two interrelated questions arise. The first regards policy: has the integration of national and sub-national interventions resulted in similar anti-poverty models in the two countries? The second concerns interpretation: why did a national intervention lack and regions expand MIS during the Great Recession in Spain, while in Italy regional programs were displaced and a (minor) national program was eventually introduced? In order to solve these puzzles, the paper departs from previous claims about the limited relevance of political competition in this policy field, underlying the crucial role of the “activation” of both Church/State and the Centre/Periphery cleavages in the national and regional political arena.