Lower House Speaker Roberto Fico
will hold a fresh round of consultations on Thursday with the
5-Star Movement (M5S), which he belongs to, and the centre-left
Democratic Party (PD) as part of his exploratory mandate to try
to break Italy's post-election political deadlock.
After the talks Fico will report to President Sergio
Mattarella.
Last week Senate Speaker Maria Elisabetta Casellati failed to
make a breakthrough with a similar exploratory mandate.
Casellati's mandate involved verifying the possibility of
forming a government made up of the centre right, the coalition
that came first in last month's inconclusive general election,
and the M5S, the biggest single party in the new parliament.
The PD, which led the last three Italian governments, had
pledged to stay in opposition after registering its worst-ever
showing in last-month's inconclusive general election.
But Caretaker PD leader Maurizio Martina opened up to
possible dialogue after the first round of talks with Figo on
Tuesday, saying he considered it a "development" that M5S chief
Luigi Di Maio has closed off the option of forming a government
with the rightwing, Euroskeptic League, the lead party in the
centre right.
Many within the PD, including ex-premier and former leader
Matteo Renzi and a large section of grassroots members, are
against negotiating with the M5S, which has frequently vilified
the centre-left group.
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