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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/11/08/MN101LS62P.DTL
Italy's prime minister offers conditional resignation
Elisabetta Povoledo,Rachel Donadio, New York Times
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
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Alessia Pierdomenico / Bloomberg
Silvio Berlusconi says he will step down if Parliament passes an austerity package demanded by the European Union.
Images
Silvio Berlusconi says he will step down if Parliament pa...The leader of the left-wing Democratic Party (PD) Pierlui...Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's prime minister, left, and Umbe... View All Images (5)
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Rome --
Cornered by the European debt crisis, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy offered a conditional resignation Tuesday, agreeing to step down but only after Parliament passes an austerity package demanded by the European Union.
Berlusconi, one of Europe's wiliest leaders and the principal figure in Italian politics for 18 years, had failed to reach a parliamentary majority in a key vote Tuesday, increasing the pressure on him to resign as financial markets drove up Italy's borrowing costs to record levels and raised further alarms about economic contagion in Europe.
Under Berlusconi's offer, once he formally stepped down, the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano would begin talks with various parliamentary leaders to decide whether to go to elections or try to form a new government with the existing political assembly.
There was no timetable affixed to Berlusconi's conditional resignation offer. The additional measures Italy had pledged to the EU have not been presented to parliament yet, although Berlusconi has said in the past that they would arrive in the Senate by mid-November.
But it was unclear how opposition lawmakers would respond. In theory, they could bring down the government during the vote on the austerity measures.
By linking his fortunes to the austerity bill - whose contents have not yet been finalized, let alone implemented - Berlusconi may have pulled off a political coup, effectively blocking both the opposition and dissidents from within his own party from bringing him down in a confidence vote over the measures.
If Berlusconi stepped down after the vote, which is expected later this month, that would give him more leverage to ask for early elections instead of creating the conditions for a government staffed by technocrats.
The day he stops being prime minister, Berlusconi would also risk losing immunity in several corruption trials.
While representing a significant setback for a leader once seen as invincible, Berlusconi's announcement does not prevent him from presenting himself as his party's lead candidate in future elections. Yet that outcome was looking more unlikely with Italy's borrowing costs spiking to record highs and European leaders increasingly seeing him as a liability for Italy.
Italy's prime minister offers conditional resignation
Elisabetta Povoledo,Rachel Donadio, New York Times
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Print E-mail Share Comments Font | Size:
0
Alessia Pierdomenico / Bloomberg
Silvio Berlusconi says he will step down if Parliament passes an austerity package demanded by the European Union.
Images
Silvio Berlusconi says he will step down if Parliament pa...The leader of the left-wing Democratic Party (PD) Pierlui...Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's prime minister, left, and Umbe... View All Images (5)
More News
Markets punish Italy to make sure Berlusconi goes 11.09.11
Paterno to retire at end of season 11.09.11
AP Exclusive: Accuser filed complaint in next job 11.09.11
Voters approve Ed Lee's pension reform 11.09.11
Rome --
Cornered by the European debt crisis, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy offered a conditional resignation Tuesday, agreeing to step down but only after Parliament passes an austerity package demanded by the European Union.
Berlusconi, one of Europe's wiliest leaders and the principal figure in Italian politics for 18 years, had failed to reach a parliamentary majority in a key vote Tuesday, increasing the pressure on him to resign as financial markets drove up Italy's borrowing costs to record levels and raised further alarms about economic contagion in Europe.
Under Berlusconi's offer, once he formally stepped down, the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano would begin talks with various parliamentary leaders to decide whether to go to elections or try to form a new government with the existing political assembly.
There was no timetable affixed to Berlusconi's conditional resignation offer. The additional measures Italy had pledged to the EU have not been presented to parliament yet, although Berlusconi has said in the past that they would arrive in the Senate by mid-November.
But it was unclear how opposition lawmakers would respond. In theory, they could bring down the government during the vote on the austerity measures.
By linking his fortunes to the austerity bill - whose contents have not yet been finalized, let alone implemented - Berlusconi may have pulled off a political coup, effectively blocking both the opposition and dissidents from within his own party from bringing him down in a confidence vote over the measures.
If Berlusconi stepped down after the vote, which is expected later this month, that would give him more leverage to ask for early elections instead of creating the conditions for a government staffed by technocrats.
The day he stops being prime minister, Berlusconi would also risk losing immunity in several corruption trials.
While representing a significant setback for a leader once seen as invincible, Berlusconi's announcement does not prevent him from presenting himself as his party's lead candidate in future elections. Yet that outcome was looking more unlikely with Italy's borrowing costs spiking to record highs and European leaders increasingly seeing him as a liability for Italy.
