Italy PM Conte resigns with a parting shot for Salvini

The Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, has said he will resign after delivering a scathing attack yesterday against far-right Interior Minister and deputy leader Matteo Salvini.

Mr Conte was appointed last year to lead a coalition made up of Mr Salvini’s League party and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) after no party won an outright majority in Italy’s general election last year. A former lawyer with centre- left politics, Mr Conte was seen as a compromise candidate to steer the new government.

But tension between coalition members has risen in recent weeks, with immigration playing a central role in the debate.

Almost two weeks earlier, Mr Salvini called for an end to the alliance and a move towards new elections.

In a speech addressing the Senate yesterday afternoon, Mr Conte sharply criticised Mr Salvini, saying it wasn’t in Italy’s interest to hold elections every year.

The Italian prime minister also accused his deputy of not responding appropriately to allegations over the so-called “Russiagate” case – that stated that the League sought illegal funding from Moscow.

With the resignation, Mr Conte has pre-empted Mr Salvini’s calls for vote of no-confidence in his government. In the coming days Italy’s president Sergio Mattarella, will hold consultations with the country’s parliamentary parties to see if a new coalition can be formed. The opposition Democratic Party and M5S have been holding talks over a potential alliance to block Mr Salvini’s path to power.

If the parliamentary arithmetic does not add up, Mr Mattarella will call the new elections Mr Salvini desires.

Mr Conte’s move to resign comes after months of infighting among governing parties in a fractured coalition. If a new government isn’t agreed upon, a new election may follow.

Tension flared at the weekend when the usually soft-spoken Mr Conte accused Mr Salvini of being disloyal and “obsessed” with immigration, calling on his deputy to let child migrants rescued in the Mediterranean disembark from a charity vessel anchored near the southern island of Lampedusa.

On August 8 at a rally for League, Mr Salvini said the coalition relationship with Five Star was becoming like divorcing parents and “must be divided”. League has soared ahead of the Five Star Movement in opinion polls, mainly due to the former’s stance against immigrants.

In the European elections in May, League won 34 per cent of the Italian vote, compared to 17 per cent obtained by Five Star.

Last Tuesday, the Senate rejected Mr Salvini’s call for a snap election, saying that it would delay discussing the matter until yesterday.