Renzi has his way in Italy, forces PM Letta to step down from post
16 Feb 2014 4:40 AM IST
Letta’s decision to quit came after the Democratic Party (PD), the largest party in the ruling coalition, supported a call by its 39-year-old leader Renzi for a more ambitious government to pull Italy out of its economic slump.
‘Italy cannot live in a situation of uncertainty and instability. We are at a crossroads,’ Renzi told a meeting of the PD’s 140-strong leadership committee.
Letta plans to tender his resignation to President Giorgio Napolitano on Friday. Napolitano is then expected to call on Renzi to form a new administration. Before that happens, however, there is likely to be considerable horsetrading.
Letta’s coalition partner, the New Centre Right party, said it would demand concessions on policy and it did not expect the government necessarily to last a full term until 2018.
‘We’re not taking anything for granted, and we’re not even sure this attempt will end smoothly,’ party leader Angelino Alfano said at a news conference.
Growing criticism over the slow pace of economic reform had left Letta, a low-key moderate appointed in April to lead the cross-party coalition patched together after last year’s deadlocked elections, increasingly isolated.
‘Italy cannot live in a situation of uncertainty and instability. We are at a crossroads,’ Renzi told a meeting of the PD’s 140-strong leadership committee.
Letta plans to tender his resignation to President Giorgio Napolitano on Friday. Napolitano is then expected to call on Renzi to form a new administration. Before that happens, however, there is likely to be considerable horsetrading.
Letta’s coalition partner, the New Centre Right party, said it would demand concessions on policy and it did not expect the government necessarily to last a full term until 2018.
‘We’re not taking anything for granted, and we’re not even sure this attempt will end smoothly,’ party leader Angelino Alfano said at a news conference.
Growing criticism over the slow pace of economic reform had left Letta, a low-key moderate appointed in April to lead the cross-party coalition patched together after last year’s deadlocked elections, increasingly isolated.
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