FREE now and never miss the top politics stories again. SUBSCRIBE Invalid email Sign up fornow and never miss the top politics stories again. We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Please see our Privacy Notice for details of your data protection rights.

'The only antidote to racism is to control, regulate and limit immigration.' Lega Nord leader Matteo Salvini

And the charity Medicins Sans Frontieres has highlighted the fact about 10,000 migrants and refugees throughout Italy are living in what they describe as “inhumane” conditions. Mr Salvini – leader of Lega Nord – signalled his intention to take a tough stance by vowing to deport 500,000 migrants within five years if his party wins the election – including 100,000 in the first year. If polling is accurate, the centre-right coalition which includes Lega Nord, as well as former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party, is on course to win a majority in the March 4 poll. And Mr Salvini said: “The only antidote to racism is to control, regulate and limit immigration. There are millions of Italians in economic difficulty. “talians are not racist, but out-of-control immigration brings with it far from positive reactions. We want to prevent that.”

GETTY Lega Nord leader Matteo Salvini has pledged to deport 500,000 refugees

GETTY There are roughly 180,000 migrants in Italy

In the report, entitled Out of Sight, which was published on February 8 and which is a follow-up to similar research undertaken two years ago, the charity highlights the country is struggling to cope with just over 180,000 asylum seekers and refugees, most of whom are in or near the capital. MSF advocacy officer Giuseppe De Mola said: “Refugees and migrants are living on the margins of society because of an inadequate reception system and harmful border policies. “What’s more, policies designed to foster social inclusion of migrants and refugees at the national, regional and local level are poorly implemented.” The Guardian reports a former office block in the Via Curtatone area of the city became a focal point of the migrant crisis six months, when police evicted 800 Eritrea and Ethiopian refugees who had been living there for four years. Bereket Arefe, who has lived in Italy since 2005, said: “They told us to go with them in buses because they would provide a solution for us.

GETTY Czech PM Andrej Babis has offered to build a kindergarten for refugee children from Italy

“But when we arrived at the police station, they said: ‘The building is evicted, our job is done’. I asked: ‘And where do we go now?” and they said: ‘Go on the street or book a room in a hotel.’ There was no plan B for us.” An estimated 100 buildings throughout Rome were similarly occupied by migrants, many without heat, water or electricity but since the summer, efforts to clear them have been stepped up. After the eviction, migrants slept in the nearby Piazza Indipendenza for five days until police cleared them out with water cannons, while Baobab Experience, an informal migrant camp set up in 2015, has been cleared 2015.