Quite often the debate over immigrants in various EU countries occupies a

central space in public opinion, especially when it comes to the issue of illegal

migration, which at the same time constitutes one of the major challenges

for the governments of these countries. However, the so-called “gateway

countries” occupy a crucial position in this debate since they have continuously

faced critical situations with respect to illegal migratory fl uxes during

the last 10 years. One of these countries is Italy, an industrial giant with one

of the largest labour markets in the EU.