‘Stop fighting or I’ll quit’, Giuseppe Conte tells populist leaders
Doosuur Iwambe
Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has warned the country’s two ruling populist parties that he will resign if they do not stop fighting.
Speaking at a news conference on Monday, the prime minister urged a “loyal collaboration” from governing ministers and said he wanted “a clear, unequivocal and speedy response”.
Conte said the parties must “honour the government’s obligations” or he would “simply end his mandate.
The fractious year-old coalition of the League and the Five Star Movement are at loggerheads on a range of issues.
Italy faces tough decisions on spending and Mr Conte is seeking a clear mandate to continue debt talks with the EU.
On Tuesday, Matteo Salvini, the leader of the right-wing League party, said he had no intention of bringing down the government.
He said it was time to push through much-needed reforms – such as greater autonomy for the regions – and that he was ready to discuss such measures with his coalition partners.
The Five Star Movement’s Luigi Di Maio also said he wanted the coalition to survive and that he was ready to “sit down around a table and start working”.
“We’re ready to discuss the League’s proposals for a flat-tax measure and more powers to local governments, we’ve always said yes to these measures – provided they are done in a certain way,” Mr Di Maio told Italian daily Corriere della Sera (in Italian).
Italy’s Ansa news agency later reported that the two leaders had reopened dialogue and had already reached a deal to end a dispute over restrictions to public building projects, which are aimed at boosting the economy.
