Berlusconi ministers 'resign posts'
Source: BBC
Ministers from ex-PM Silvio Berlusconi's party are resigning from Italy's shaky coalition government, a spokesman says.
Prime Minister Enrico Letta flew back from New York on Friday in attempt to prevent the coalition from collapsing.
Mr Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PDL) party objects to a planned tax rise.
Its MPs had already threatened to resign if a Senate committee voted next week to expel the ex-PM over his tax fraud conviction.
Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24319274
Berlin Expat
(946 posts)like new elections on the horizon in Italy.
*sigh*
I remember a couple of years reading an article in the Frankfurter Allgemeine, wherein they'd coined a new German word to specifically describe Berlusconi:
Politclown.
Most appropriate.
dipsydoodle
(42,239 posts)in support of a turd.
Judi Lynn
(160,211 posts)Silvio Berlusconi ministers resign and leave Italian economy in chaos
The Italian centre-right leader's announcement will likely lead to new elections or formation of a new coalition
Reuters
theguardian.com, Saturday 28 September 2013 15.24 EDT
Italian centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi pulled his ministers out of the ruling coalition on Saturday, effectively bringing down the government of Prime Minister Enrico Letta and leaving Europe's third-largest economy in chaos.
The announcement, which will likely lead either to new elections or the formation of a new coalition, came a day after Letta challenged Berlusconi's party to support him in a confidence vote in parliament following weeks of tension.
Late on Friday, the cabinet failed to agree vital fiscal measures to bring the budget deficit within European Union limits, leaving the fragile coalition of traditional rivals from the left and right near total breakdown.
Tensions between the two sides had been rising for weeks following moves to expel Berlusconi from parliament after his conviction for tax fraud last month.
More:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/28/silvio-berlusconi-ministers-resign-italian-economy-chaos
muriel_volestrangler
(101,146 posts)Update at the BBC link:
...
But the prime minister responded angrily to the resignations, accusing the PDL leader of telling Italians a "huge lie" in using the sales tax as an alibi for his own personal issues.
...
Prime Minister Enrico Letta is among the most mild-mannered of Italy's politicians.
...
So there's no going back. This most awkward and unhappy of coalition governments is finished.