The government lost to the
opposition Thursday in a Senate vote on an amendment to its
anti-terror bill in what some say could be the first sign of
cracks in Premier Matteo Renzi's unusual left-right governing
coalition.
Today's vote comes in the aftermath of a resounding defeat
for Renzi's center-left Democratic Party (PD) in local elections
across Italy, in which the PD lost key cities including the
capital to the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S).
The amendment presented by two Senators from Silvio
Berlusconi's center-right opposition Forza Italia (FI) party
would increase the penalty for terrorist acts to 15 years and up
if they involve the use of nuclear devices, while the majority
version of the bill called for prison sentences of 6-12 years.
The motion passed with 102 in favor, 92 against and four
abstaining.
Just 80 of 113 PD Senators were present during the vote,
but the more significant signal came from the PD's junior ally -
the small splinter New Center Right (NCD) party. Of its
31-member caucus, 15 were absent and nine voted with the
opposition.
Also voting against the government was the ALA group of
former Berlusconi aide Denis Verdini, whose centre-right caucus
provided the swing vote that got Renzi's landmark civil unions
law approved last month.
All this spells trouble for Renzi's coalition, and the
premier needs to change his tune, leftwing dissenters within the
PD said.
"We have often voted for things we found unconvincing, for
example the indiscriminate abolition of the housing tax,
including for billionaires," said MP Roberto Speranza, leader of
a dissenting PD minority.
"We demand a profound change and we say enough is
enough...we are no longer available to support measures that
worsen the social divide, because in this way we will only hand
the country over to the right and to the M5S".
Dissenters called for changes to the premier's Italicum
electoral law and for Renzi to generally readjust his attitude
ahead a meeting of the party executive, which was brought
forward to Friday from next week in the aftermath of the city
elections debacle.
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