Coalition will survive, Italian insists
ROME — Italy’s premier insisted Saturday that his coalition will last three more years, even after a minister quit in protest and despite an upcoming regional election that right-wing parties see as an opportunity.
Premier Giuseppe Conte brushed off concerns that his government, which took office in September, could implode. Infighting has been reported in the main party, the populist 5-Star Movement, and among leaders of the Democratic Party, the other key coalition member.
Conte is leading his second coalition government since the 2018 elections for Parliament left Italy in political gridlock, dependent on rival parties governing together.
“I cannot be premier without the full, convinced support of the coalition parties, but [early elections] will be a defeat for everyone,” with voters angry over government infighting, he said.
Conte advised members of his coalition to engage in “lively debate, but not squabbling for squabbling’s sake.”
Conte, a lawyer specializing in mediation, first became premier a year and a half ago in a coalition that paired the 5-Star Movement with the rival right-wing Northern League, led by anti-migrant proponent Matteo Salvini.
Now Parliament’s main opposition leader, Salvini has been campaigning for right-wing forces in next month’s election to wrest control of the governorship of the Emilia Romagna region, with its capital in Bologna, long a proud stronghold of the left.
Should the Northern League and Salvini’s allies — including a growing far-right party with neo-fascist roots — triumph in the regional vote, then pressure would build on the Democrats to break off the national government alliance with the rival 5-Star Movement. The alliance could be blamed for alienating traditional leftwing supporters.
If the Democrats bolted from Conte’s government, then Italian President Sergio Mattarella would likely set new elections.
Despite his popularity among Italians, Conte has ruled out leading any new party, saying that would only further confuse Italy’s already fragmented political forces. Parliament’s term runs out in early 2023.
Conte downplayed any worries about the outcome of the January regional vote. Instead, he noted government determination to tackle an ambitious agenda after the holidays.
The proposed changes will include streamlining bureaucracy and fighting tax evasion to lower the burden on the middle class, which is struggling amid a stagnant economy.
“If we don’t want the country to go bankrupt, it’s clear to everyone that we must work in a serious, rational, credible” way, Conte said.
He indicated that the resignation of his education minister over funding for schools hadn’t hurt his resolve to forge ahead with the coalition.
Conte also announced that he was creating a ministry for university and research. For years, Italy has suffered a brain drain as researchers go abroad, frustrated by the bureaucracy in a country where connections frequently count more than expertise.