Rome, July 17 (BNA) Mayors, business organizations and union leaders in Italy urged Prime Minister Mario Draghi at the weekend to reconsider his decision to resign, warning that the stability of the debt-laden country was in danger.
Draghi submitted his resignation last week after one of his broad coalition parties, the 5-Star Movement, refused to support the government in a parliamentary vote of confidence, according to Reuters.
President Sergio Mattarella has rejected his resignation and asked him to address parliament next week, hoping to reach a consensus to avert early elections at a time of international turmoil and economic tensions.
Draghi comfortably won the confidence vote on a raft of measures aimed at easing the cost of living for families and businesses. But he said that without the full support of all his partners, the national unity government cannot survive.
The populist 5-Star party, riven by internal divisions, says it has not quit the alliance, but has called on Draghi to give the group guarantees that he will implement its policy priorities, such as the minimum wage.
“We cannot share the responsibility of the government if there is no certainty on the issues we have confirmed,” Giuseppe Conte, the five-star leader, said on Facebook late Saturday.
A source in the prime minister’s office said Draghi would not succumb to any “ultimatum” and was determined to resign.
But he has faced pressure to change his mind amid warnings that Italy risks losing billions of euros in EU funds for its post-pandemic recovery and will struggle to contain rising energy costs without a fully functioning government.
The mayors of 110 Italian cities, including the 10 largest, said in an open letter that they were following the unrest “with concern and concern”, and called on all parties to show responsibility.
“We, the mayors, whom we call every day to manage and solve the problems of our citizens, ask Mario Draghi to go ahead and explain to Parliament the good reasons why the government should continue,” they wrote.
A group of industry, agriculture and trade associations also issued statements urging the government to continue while the head of Italy’s largest union said stability was essential.
“I am not taking sides, but I will say that we have a government that has not lost a vote of confidence,” Maurizio Landini, the leader of the CGIL group, told La Repubblica daily.
However, overcoming growing resentment in the ranks of the government and continuing to operate regardless has looked increasingly difficult, making national elections in September or October a likely possibility.
Draghi took office in early 2021 tasked with guiding Italy through the coronavirus emergency. The legislature is due to end in early 2023 and polls suggest the conservative party bloc will win a clear majority.
Two of these parties, the League and Forza Italia, are members of the coalition and the prospect of winning the fall ballot gives them good reason to welcome the coalition’s collapse.
Both groups say they are willing to remain in the Draghi government but on the condition that the 5-star government does not exist – a requirement that Draghi has already ruled out.