CONFUSION AND uncertainty yesterday surrounded Italy’s preparations for today’s crucial EU summit in Brussels with political insiders in Rome suggesting that the government’s hastily devised emergency growth plan, called for by EU leaders last Sunday, may prove less than convincing.
Such was the climate of alarm that senior government spokesman Paolo Bonaiuti was last night obliged to issue a statement denying media speculation that the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, had chosen to sidestep what may well be another difficult day for him, saying: “ Prime Minister Berlusconi will be in Brussels today, that is absolutely confirmed, all the rest is just fanciful conjecture . . . ”
For most of a chaotic day, Mr Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party (PDL) struggled to strike a deal with coalition ally, the Northern League, particularly on pension reforms. Last night, PDL secretary Angelino Alfano announced that the two parties had come to an agreement, adding that today they will present their EU partners with a plan that will prompt a “positive reaction”.
Political commentators, however, point out that, thus far, almost nothing is known of the details of this emergency package. Furthermore, it is believed that Mr Berlusconi intends to present the package by way of a letter sent to the European Council last night. Those familiar with EU modus operandi suggested that particular move was unlikely to cut much ice in Brussels.
The impression remains that for most of yesterday, the Berlusconi government’s energies seemed more concentrated on avoiding a government crisis, if not to say collapse, than on presenting today’s package.
The virulent opposition of the Northern League to further pension reform led Northern League leader, Senator Umberto Bossi, to say yesterday morning: “certainly, this government could fall, we’re risking [early] elections . . . The situation is very dangerous and it’s difficult to arrive at an agreement [on pensions]. If we raise the minimum age to 67, people will kill us.”
The fact that some sort of compromise agreement seems to have subsequently been achieved prompted opposition figures to question the effectiveness of the proposed measures.
Former centre-left prime minister Massimo D’Alema said: “The government has failed either to enact the pension reform or to come up with a growth plan.
“All they have done is to write a letter of good intentions. The bottom line is that this government just can’t do the job.”
Earlier in the day, the government had come under strong pressure from Italy’s President Giorgio Napolitano, who called on it to swiftly enact the “decisions of great importance” with regard to “growth incentives and structural reforms”, decisions that had been announced on Monday afternoon by the prime minister.
In an unusual move, President Napolitano also criticised French president Nicolas Sarkozy and German chancellor Angela Merkel when, in an obvious reference to last Sunday’s now infamous post-summit press conference, he complained about the “inopportune and unpleasant public expressions of scant trust in Italy’s ability to honour its commitments”.
