The Italian government plans to impose a ban on full-face coverings in schools, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni seeks to galvanize hard-right voters ahead of a general election next year.

Meloni’s government also endorsed a classroom cap on the number of foreign students who lack adequate Italian. The measures are part a slate of new education laws placing restrictions on foreigners.

“A limit of 30% per classroom for students who don’t adequately know Italian, plus tools to learn our language and a ban on burqas and niqabs in school,” Meloni posted on social media after a cabinet meeting, referring to two forms of face coverings worn by Muslim women. She said these were “tools of common sense that do not divide, but truly help to integrate.” The move is the latest attempt by Meloni’s center-right coalition to stem the rise of the ultra-nationalist National Future party, which has peeled away lawmakers from her government and risen in opinion polls by targeting migrants, LGBTQ rights and support for Ukraine. Meloni, who once played a similar role in opposition, has already adopted tougher messaging on law and order to counter the surging popularity of Roberto Vannacci, the former army general who leads National Future.

“A limit of 30% per classroom for students who don’t adequately know Italian, plus tools to learn our language and a ban on burqas and niqabs in school,” Meloni posted on social media after a cabinet meeting, referring to two forms of face coverings worn by Muslim women. She said these were “tools of common sense that do not divide, but truly help to integrate.” The move is the latest attempt by Meloni’s center-right coalition to stem the rise of the ultra-nationalist National Future party, which has peeled away lawmakers from her government and risen in opinion polls by targeting migrants, LGBTQ rights and support for Ukraine. Meloni, who once played a similar role in opposition, has already adopted tougher messaging on law and order to counter the surging popularity of Roberto Vannacci, the former army general who leads National Future.

Italy, which sits on the European Union’s southern border, has long grappled with migrant arrivals and the integration of those who settle in the country, especially from different religious backgrounds.

“Inadequate knowledge of Italian weighs considerably on educational failure,” Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said Thursday.

“We’ve been working on this issue well before” the rise of Vannacci, he had previously told Corriere della Sera. “The burqa is a symbol of a violent patriarchal mentality that considers a woman as a good and not as a person.” The government has said it will approve the measures through a decree, meaning they will now go to President Sergio Mattarella before taking effect and must be then converted into law by Parliament. This week, in remarks widely interpreted as an implicit warning over the proposal, Mattarella stressed the importance of integration and the constitutional right to education.

Meloni’s coalition is showing signs of deepening fissures ahead of next year’s election. Last week, her government, under pressure to stem the impact of spiraling energy prices on consumers, backed a road tax cut for millions of vehicle owners.