ITALY: Italian prime minister Romano Prodi yesterday vowed to undo most of the policies of his predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi, and pledged to bring Italy's troops home from what he called the "occupation" of Iraq.
Outlining his programme a day after his centre-left government was sworn in, Mr Prodi said Italy needed a social, economic and moral jolt to mark a clean break with the past.
"We consider the war in Iraq and the occupation of the country a grave error," Mr Prodi told the senate. "It has not resolved but complicated the situation of security," he said to loud jeering from centre-right benches.
"Terrorism has found a new base in Iraq and new excuses for terror attacks both inside and outside the country."
Mr Prodi said he would propose to parliament withdrawing all of Italy's 2,600 soldiers, but said the pull-out would be agreed with all the sides involved and that he intended to continue Italy's traditionally good relations with Washington.
On the domestic front, he vowed to overturn many of the policies that defined Mr Berlusconi's five years in power.
The senate, where the centre-left has a two-seat majority, will hold a confidence vote on his programme today.
"Our country needs a strong jolt," Mr Prodi said in his 90-minute speech, adding that this referred not only to its weak economy but also to the need to "restore a culture of legality".
"In our society, there is a climate of tolerance and being accustomed to ethically reprehensible, if not outright illegal, behaviour, to huge conflicts of interests, to sudden and shameless enrichment," he said. "There is a moral crisis: the cunning must not prevail," he added, vowing to fight tax evasion.
Mr Prodi promised new regulations for the media industry and tougher conflict of interest laws, a clear reference to accusations which dogged Mr Berlusconi, who controls Italy's largest private broadcaster.
He also promised to review a law on labour market flexibility which the centre-left says undermines job security, but analysts doubt whether his government, drawn from eight parties ranging from Catholic moderates to communists, will be strong enough to pass any far-reaching reform.