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Italian centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani ‘to quit’

Many of Mr Bersani's allies refused to back his choices of candidate

The leader of Italy’s centre-left alliance, Pier Luigi Bersani, has promised to step down once parliament elects a new president.

Many of Mr Bersani’s allies refused to back his choices of candidate

Mr Bersani announced the news to his Democratic Party (PD) after many centre-left MPs twice refused to back his preferred candidate for president.

The centre-left failed to gain an overall majority at February’s general election despite coming first.

A caretaker technocratic cabinet has been governing in the meantime.

‘Unacceptable’

The political deadlock has compounded concern about the stability of Italy whose economy, the third-biggest in the eurozone, is mired in recession.

President Giorgio Napolitano is set to step down on 15 May at the end of his seven-year term but two parliamentary votes on his successor failed.

On Thursday, former trade unionist and ex-Senate speaker Franco Marini fell well short of the two-thirds majority needed, while on Friday dozens of PD rebels stayed away from the secret ballot, when former Prime Minister Romano Prodi stood as candidate.

 

Read full article on BBC

 

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