The political parties that make up the Government of Italy in a technical mandate today continued to argue over key issues, and the deadline for progress in the negotiations on a new ruling majority expires tonight.
The leaders of the parties that make up Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's government hinted during breaks in negotiations that they are still divided over the relationship to economic aid from the EU fund for recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, but also over the minimum wage and the reform of the justice system, according to the Associated Press.
The main dispute is between the populist Five Star Movement, the strongest ruling party close to Conte, and the small Viva Italia party of former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
The Five Star Movement opposes accepting billions of euros in loans from the EU for the health system, fearing that Italy would become subject to EU dictates, for example regarding austerity measures.
The populists also want to keep the guaranteed minimum wage for unemployed and low-income Italians, which is one of the hallmarks of their government.
On the other hand, Renzi insists that Italy should accept EU aid for the health system and criticizes the minimum wage mechanism as ineffective.
Between the two fires found the Democratic Party, the center-left party that was the most powerful in Italy for many years.
Italy found itself in a new political crisis after Conte resigned on January 26 after failing to secure a new stable majority in the Senate after Renzi's party denied him confidence.
As the reason for leaving Conte's coalition, Renci's party cited a dispute over how to spend more than 200 billion euros from the EU fund for recovery from the pandemic.
On Friday, Italian President Sergio Mattarella entrusted the Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament, Roberto Fico, with the task of determining whether the parties of the current ruling majority can form a new sustainable coalition that urgently needs to address the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The new government should also tackle the economic crisis. The authorities announced yesterday that around 2020 jobs were lost in 450.000.
Mattarella announced that Fico, a high-ranking official of the Five Star Movement, should submit a report to him on the progress in forming a new government by tonight.
The president of Italy should then decide whether to offer Conte a mandate to form a new government, or to open the door to a different majority or to call for extraordinary elections.
Conte became prime minister after the 2018 election at the suggestion of the Five Star Movement, which then formed a government with Matteo Salvini's far-right League party.
Conte's first government fell in August 2019 when he resigned to prevent a confidence vote that Salvini had sought in order to force snap elections, as his popularity rose due to his anti-immigrant policies.
Salvini's League then moved into the opposition, and Conte formed a second government in which, along with the Five Star Movement, the Democratic Party entered. Renci was also in it then, but he left it in the meantime.
The Nationalist League, which according to the latest polls has overtaken the Five Star Movement, is seeking early elections, confident of victory.
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