The President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, has once again focused attention on the state of Italian prisons, calling it "serious and now unsustainable". He did so during a meeting with the Head of the Department of Penitentiary Administration and a delegation from the Penitentiary Police, bringing back into focus a topic that has long fueled political debate. The Head of State emphasized the importance of "urgent maintenance and restructuring interventions", urging a move beyond an exclusively custodial view of prison spaces: "Prisons must include spaces dedicated to sociality, affectivity, and rehabilitation planning", he declared. Mattarella also discussed the challenges that prison workers and system operators face: "The lack of staff is a structural criticality", he noted,  "that concerns both the Penitentiary Police Corps and educators, doctors, and all the staff working in the institutions". The President finds the health situation within the facilities, particularly for offenders with mental disorders, to be particularly concerning. The primary focus of the presidential message, however, is on the treatment of prisoners: "Prisons must not be transformed into schools of crime or into places without hope. Instead, they must be used for rehabilitation. Each individual recovered is a benefit to collective security and is consistent with constitutional principles".