Romanian, Polish and Russian immigrants are increasingly feared by Italians, a poll published by the Ansa news agency and about to be printed in the political magazine Limes indicates. Still, although they say they fear more and more the immigrants, an increasing number of Italians also say that they have an immigrant friend (36%).

35.7% of the poll respondents say they made friends among immigrants at work, 32.8% say their children have immigrant friends in school (compared to 19.2% in 2003) and 27.4% have immigrant neighbors (23% in 2003).

Still, 34.6% of the Italians consider that immigrants are a danger for their country, their culture and their religious identity (compared to 26.6% in 2005), while 34% say immigrants are a threat for their jobs.

Most Italians agree with immigrants voting in Italian elections and 74% say immigrants should be allowed to work in the local administration.

As a curiosity, after the 9/11 attacks, some 53% of the Italians said they were afraid of East European immigrants and only 32.7% were rather scared by Arabs.