Italian Prime Minister Likely To Address Senate Over Political Crisis On August 20

ROME (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th August, 2019) The leaders of parliamentary groups of the Italian parliament's upper house tentatively scheduled an address by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte in connection with the political crisis that erupted in the country for August 20.

On Monday, the heads of the Senate factions were supposed to determine the order and date of the discussion and vote of no confidence in Conte, which was introduced by the Lega party. In the absence of a unanimous decision, they tentatively agreed on a date for the prime minister to speak, followed by a vote of confidence on August 20. The final decision on this issue will be made at the Senate's meeting on Tuesday evening.

The Lega, the Brothers of Italy and Forward Italy parties jointly demanded that a vote of no confidence in Conte and his government be held on Wednesday, but they ended up in the minority at the meeting.

A rift between the two coalition partners, Five Star Movement (M5S) and the Lega, deepened last week after the M5S voted against a costly Turin-Lyon high-speed rail link project (TAV) backed by the Lega. The Lega leader and interior minister, Matteo Salvini, then announced the collapse of the coalition and submitted a no-confidence motion against the government in a bid to trigger a snap election. The final decision is up to Italian President Sergio Mattarella.

The Calendar of the current political crisis is complicated by the traditional summer recess. After the collapse of the coalition, parliamentary parties were forced to recall their members from vacation. Many lawmakers had not yet managed to return to Italy.