Italy's new govt to face second confidence vote
Premier Romano Prodi’s government faced a vote of confidence in the Italian lower house of Parliament today, the last parliamentary hurdle before it can get to work.
Prodi is expected to comfortably win the vote in the Chamber of Deputies, where his centre-left coalition controls about 55 per cent of seats.
Last week Prodi won the vote in the Senate, where his forces have a razor-thin edge over Silvio Berlusconi’s conservatives.
Before the vote in the evening, the premier was scheduled to deliver a speech to politicians.
He was expected to largely reiterate the programme outlined last week to the Senate, which included pledges to bring home Italian troops from Iraq and apply shock therapy to fix the country’s ailing economy.
After the votes of confidence, the government can finally get to work, about six weeks since April 9-10 elections that ended Berlusconi’s rule after five years. The election was among the closest in modern Italy.
A check of contested ballots and the need to elect a new president – who has the power to give the nod to form a government – delayed the changeover.
Prodi was finally able to form his government and was sworn in with his ministers last week.
