10/07/2003 13:22
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's ruling coalition is under mounting strain as his Nazi remark in the European Parliament and disputes over economic policies deepen a rift among the allies who brought him to power.
The Northern League party, which advocates more autonomy for Italy's regions in the north, is threatening to leave the coalition. Leader Umberto Bossi's decision to quit Berlusconi's first administration led to that government's collapse in 1994.
``There are very serious problems in the coalition,'' said James Walston, head of the Department of International Relations at the American University in Rome. ``The reasons for staying together are still greater than those for breaking up.''
Berlusconi's popularity has dropped after Italy's economy shrank in the first quarter. Many voters haven't benefited from tax cuts promised in his 2001 campaign. The Italian leader upset coalition allies and fellow European Union leaders when he likened a German Social Democrat to a Nazi concentration camp officer on the second day of Italy's EU presidency.
Deputy Premier Gianfranco Fini, who has spent his political career trying to distance his National Alliance party from its Fascist roots, said Berlusconi should have apologized for his comment in the European Parliament. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder also demanded an apology.
Rome Elections
Berlusconi has the biggest parliamentary majority since World War II, controlling 56 percent of the lower house. His House of Freedoms coalition is composed of his own party, Forza Italia, Fini's National Alliance, Bossi's Northern League and the Union of Christian Democrats party. Berlusconi would still have a majority without Bossi's seats.
The government has survived in power for more than two years, making it Italy's fourth-longest government since 1945. Italian governments have averaged less than a year in power in that period.
The government lost ground in local elections in May. The loss of Rome's regional seat triggered a series of emergency meetings with members of House of Freedoms coalition to try to patch up the alliance.
``The electoral pact has been betrayed and I no longer feel tied to it,'' Bossi told la Repubblica in an interview.
Berlusconi's decision to place Fini in charge of a separate ``mini-cabinet'' setting economic and social policy raised concern among other allies. The promotion would clip the powers of Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti, who has close ties to the Northern League. The mini-cabinet's first scheduled meeting yesterday was boycotted by the Christian Democratic Union party, a smaller member of the coalition, prompting Fini to cancel the meeting.
`Letting off Steam'
``The Bossi-Tremonti-Berlusconi axis isn't what it was,'' Walston said. ``This will also have caused problems.''
Berlusconi downplayed the allies' squabbles. On a visit to Italian filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli in Positano, the prime minister said he had decided to ``let the boys let off some steam,'' according to RAI.
Hitches in a first draft of next year's budget, known as the DPEF, caused by clashes over how to approach pension reform has also heightened tensions within the coalition. The government plans to cut pension spending next year, the Corriere della Sera newspaper said citing a government document.
Berlusconi swept to victory in May 2001 on promises of tax cuts and creating 1.5 million jobs. His ruling coalition helped push through parliament an immunity law that suspended a corruption trial against the prime minister just in time for Italy to inherit the EU presidency from Greece on July 1.
Vacation Scrapped
Seventy-seven percent of voters for Berlusconi's alliance said they approve of the government in a June poll, compared with 84 percent in the same month last year. Among those voting for opposition parties, the government's approval rating slipped to 6 percent from 10 percent.
Italy's six-month EU presidency began with an uproar in the European Parliament, where Berlusconi told German lawmaker Martin Schulz he'd be perfect for a screen role as a Nazi.
Relations with Germany suffered a fresh blow this week when Stefano Stefani, a junior Italian minister and member of the Northern League, referred to German tourists as ``uniform and loud blonds who invade Italian beaches'' in a newsletter affiliated with Bossi's party.
Schroeder yesterday announced he scrapped his vacation in Italy planned for next week, after Stefani refused to withdraw his comments.
Italian optimism about the government's handling of the EU presidency plunged after Berlusconi's gaffe, Corriere della Sera said in a poll on Monday. The EU president serves as the spokesman for the 15-nation bloc, shepherds legislation and runs summit meetings.
Fifty-one percent of Italians polled Friday said Italy probably would have a positive presidency, compared with 74 percent on June 12, according to the Ispo/Telesurvey poll published by Corriere.
The Northern League party, which advocates more autonomy for Italy's regions in the north, is threatening to leave the coalition. Leader Umberto Bossi's decision to quit Berlusconi's first administration led to that government's collapse in 1994.
``There are very serious problems in the coalition,'' said James Walston, head of the Department of International Relations at the American University in Rome. ``The reasons for staying together are still greater than those for breaking up.''
Berlusconi's popularity has dropped after Italy's economy shrank in the first quarter. Many voters haven't benefited from tax cuts promised in his 2001 campaign. The Italian leader upset coalition allies and fellow European Union leaders when he likened a German Social Democrat to a Nazi concentration camp officer on the second day of Italy's EU presidency.
Deputy Premier Gianfranco Fini, who has spent his political career trying to distance his National Alliance party from its Fascist roots, said Berlusconi should have apologized for his comment in the European Parliament. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder also demanded an apology.
Rome Elections
Berlusconi has the biggest parliamentary majority since World War II, controlling 56 percent of the lower house. His House of Freedoms coalition is composed of his own party, Forza Italia, Fini's National Alliance, Bossi's Northern League and the Union of Christian Democrats party. Berlusconi would still have a majority without Bossi's seats.
The government has survived in power for more than two years, making it Italy's fourth-longest government since 1945. Italian governments have averaged less than a year in power in that period.
The government lost ground in local elections in May. The loss of Rome's regional seat triggered a series of emergency meetings with members of House of Freedoms coalition to try to patch up the alliance.
``The electoral pact has been betrayed and I no longer feel tied to it,'' Bossi told la Repubblica in an interview.
Berlusconi's decision to place Fini in charge of a separate ``mini-cabinet'' setting economic and social policy raised concern among other allies. The promotion would clip the powers of Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti, who has close ties to the Northern League. The mini-cabinet's first scheduled meeting yesterday was boycotted by the Christian Democratic Union party, a smaller member of the coalition, prompting Fini to cancel the meeting.
`Letting off Steam'
``The Bossi-Tremonti-Berlusconi axis isn't what it was,'' Walston said. ``This will also have caused problems.''
Berlusconi downplayed the allies' squabbles. On a visit to Italian filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli in Positano, the prime minister said he had decided to ``let the boys let off some steam,'' according to RAI.
Hitches in a first draft of next year's budget, known as the DPEF, caused by clashes over how to approach pension reform has also heightened tensions within the coalition. The government plans to cut pension spending next year, the Corriere della Sera newspaper said citing a government document.
Berlusconi swept to victory in May 2001 on promises of tax cuts and creating 1.5 million jobs. His ruling coalition helped push through parliament an immunity law that suspended a corruption trial against the prime minister just in time for Italy to inherit the EU presidency from Greece on July 1.
Vacation Scrapped
Seventy-seven percent of voters for Berlusconi's alliance said they approve of the government in a June poll, compared with 84 percent in the same month last year. Among those voting for opposition parties, the government's approval rating slipped to 6 percent from 10 percent.
Italy's six-month EU presidency began with an uproar in the European Parliament, where Berlusconi told German lawmaker Martin Schulz he'd be perfect for a screen role as a Nazi.
Relations with Germany suffered a fresh blow this week when Stefano Stefani, a junior Italian minister and member of the Northern League, referred to German tourists as ``uniform and loud blonds who invade Italian beaches'' in a newsletter affiliated with Bossi's party.
Schroeder yesterday announced he scrapped his vacation in Italy planned for next week, after Stefani refused to withdraw his comments.
Italian optimism about the government's handling of the EU presidency plunged after Berlusconi's gaffe, Corriere della Sera said in a poll on Monday. The EU president serves as the spokesman for the 15-nation bloc, shepherds legislation and runs summit meetings.
Fifty-one percent of Italians polled Friday said Italy probably would have a positive presidency, compared with 74 percent on June 12, according to the Ispo/Telesurvey poll published by Corriere.
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