ROME – Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has resigned, introducing a phase of political instability that could lead to a new government or elections this spring.
The collapse of the left-leaning Italian government comes as the country, like most of the Western world, struggles to control the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, vaccinate its population and rekindle economic growth.
The fall of the Italian leader also shows that Europe’s political challenges in recent years – including the fragmentation of the political landscape and the rise of anti-establishment parties – have not disappeared, despite pressure from the pandemic on European politicians to work together. .
Mr Conte resigned on Tuesday after losing a majority in Italy’s Senate this month following a battle with a small coalition alliance over how the EU spends massive funds to help Italy’s economy recover. from the pandemic.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte was in his office at the Chigi Palace in Rome on Tuesday.
Photo:
filippo attili / chigi palace / EPA / Shutterstock
The Italian head of state, President Sergio Mattarella, will begin political consultations with parties in parliament to test whether a new government majority can be found. Possible scenarios include a government under a new prime minister or another coalition led by Mr Conte.
If Mr Mattarella concludes that no stable majority can be gathered, he will dissolve Parliament and call elections.
The government fell apart after a small centrist party led by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi left the coalition, citing disagreement over how Mr Conte wanted to spend more than € 200 billion, the equivalent of $ 243 billion, in EU recovery funds for Italy.
Mr Conte and his main coalition members, the center-left Democratic Party and the 5-star populist movement, tried to find new supporters in the Senate, the upper house of the Italian parliament, to replace Mr Renzi’s party, but the search bore little fruit.
Former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has pulled his party out of the ruling coalition in a dispute over EU recovery funds.
Photo:
francesco fotia / press pool
However, if a new group of centrist senators willing to support Mr Conte appears in the coming days, Mr Mattarella could reappoint him prime minister. Many political analysts consider this the most likely outcome. It would be the third coalition government led by Mr Conte since 2018, when the little-known law professor first entered national politics.
“The default solution would be another Conte government, with wider support and significant signs of discontinuity with the past,” said Lorenzo Codogno, a London-based consultant and former economist at the Italian Treasury.
Alternatively, a majority in Parliament could appear to support a government under a new prime minister. Mr Renzi’s party, Italia Viva, has shown more desire to support a government that is not led by Mr Conte.
A new prime minister could come from the Democratic Party or the 5 Star Movement, or he could be a politically independent figure with technocratic expertise.
Part of Italy’s right-wing opposition has called for early elections, but the parties behind the outgoing left-wing government want to avoid this, if possible. Opinion polls indicate a victory for the right.
Opponents of the early elections say it would put public health problems at the root of the pandemic and also delay Italy’s efforts to draw up a plan to revive its battered economy using EU funds.
Write to Giovanni Legorano la [email protected]
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