Italian student protests over living costs and education funding turn violent in several cities
Student protests over school conditions and the cost of living spread across Italy on 16 October, with clashes between police and some demonstrators in several cities. The unrest reflects wider student protests in France and Belgium and has put education funding, defence spending and government policy in focus.
Protesters in Rome threw firecrackers and smoke bombs near the Education Ministry, while police used water cannon in Turin, where demonstrators threw rocks and burned a cardboard tank. Students also called for limits on foreign enrolments and for more public money to go to education rather than defence; some teachers joined the marches. Nato data cited in the article puts Italy’s 2025 defence spending above €45 billion, nearly 40 per cent higher than in 2024, while education spending fell from 4.3 to 4.1 per cent of GDP.
- Student protests spread across Italian cities.
- Clashes included rocks, firecrackers and water cannon.
- Defence spending rose as education’s GDP share fell.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Supporters of the protests argue that high living costs and strained school conditions make education funding an urgent public priority. With defence spending rising as education’s share of GDP falls, they say students and teachers have good reason to demand a clearer balance of public resources and a say in policies affecting access to education.
The case against
Critics argue that governments must weigh education alongside defence and other public needs, and that a change in spending priorities should be justified by evidence about its effects. They may also support orderly protest while condemning firecrackers, rocks and other violence as dangerous and counterproductive, and question whether restricting foreign enrolments is a fair response to pressure on schools.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Europe’s student riots spread to Italy as hooded protesters clash with cops sparking chaos in cities”.