Jobs Act passes Lower House

(ANSA) - Rome, November 25 - The Lower House on Tuesday approved center-left Premier Matteo Renzi's signature Jobs Act labour reform bill with 316 in favor, six against and five abstaining. The victory for Renzi came after some dissenters from within his Democratic Party (PD) earlier looked set to join opposition parties' efforts to ambush the bill in spite of extensive talks within the ruling majority. Thirty Lower House MPs from Premier Matteo Renzi's center-left Democratic Party (PD) had signed a written statement explaining why would abstain from the final vote.
    In spite of amendments made after extensive debate, the changes to the bill are still not enough, they said. Earlier still, ex PD chief Pier Luigi Bersani, one of the bill's most vocal opponents, stated he would vote in favor "out of party discipline" although parts of the proposed legislation leave him "unconvinced". The statement by the party's one-time secretary-general and ex-premier of Italy was followed by "one last appeal for party unity" by PD President Matteo Orfini. "I hope everyone will make one last effort out of respect for the all work we've done and for our community," he said. During floor debate, a group of FIOM metalworker union members tried to stage a protest from the public's section of the Lower House, but were pushed back by security. The bill now returns to the Senate for what should be its final reading.