Italy’s migration debate has taken a new turn as northern European countries move to return asylum seekers whose first EU entry was through Italy. Finland is preparing transfers, joining Germany, Austria and Switzerland in applying the new European migration rules more aggressively. Italian opposition leaders argue Giorgia Meloni’s hard-line approach has backfired by encouraging other governments to push responsibility back onto Italy. Supporters can argue that this is simply the EU applying agreed rules. The controversy cuts straight into one of the EU’s hardest unresolved questions: who should ultimately be responsible for asylum seekers?