PRESS RELEASE : Keir Starmer meeting with Prime Minister Meloni of Italy [September 2024]
The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 16 September 2024.
The Prime Minister met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome this afternoon – the latest in his series of visits with European leaders to reset and strengthen the UK’s relationship with its closest partners.
They had a warm and constructive discussion, focused on the vital importance of the UK-Italy relationship, particularly as NATO allies and G7 partners. They both agreed to continue deepening our friendship across areas including trade, migration and defence to further benefit the British and Italian people.
Both welcomed the significant sum of Italian investment into the UK announced today, worth nearly half a billion pounds – demonstrating the strength of our bilateral trade relationship to create jobs and drive economic growth.
They acknowledged the growing problem of irregular migration, with the incident in the Channel yesterday serving as yet another devastating reminder of the impact of vile people smuggling gangs who continue to profit from people’s suffering.
The Prime Minister reflected on his visit to the National Coordination Centre in Rome this morning, accompanied by the UK’s newly appointed Border Security Commander Martin Hewitt. They agreed to take immediate steps to enhance our cross-border collaboration, learning from Italy’s success at reducing illegal migration by 60% in the last year through upstream work and enforcement.
They both reaffirmed their support for Ukraine, agreeing that the UK and Italy will stand with them for as long as it takes for Russia to withdraw. On the Middle East, they agreed on the need for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and more aid flows into Gaza.
Against an increasingly challenging international backdrop, the leaders agreed it was more important than ever to work closely on our defence and foreign policy alongside other like-minded partners, to preserve peace and stability.
They agreed to keep in close contact in order to build on the progress made today.
