SEL party leaves Rome city council

(ANSA) - Rome, July 27 - The small, leftwing Left Ecology Freedom (SEL) party will not sit on the new Rome city council being put together by Democratic Party (PD) Mayor Ignazio Marino. "We continue serving Rome," SEL Rome coordinator Paolo Cento said after a meeting with Marino. "Clearly the issue of who gets to be deputy mayor is entirely bound to the issue of alliance with the PD - if the mayor's party want to destroy the center-left in Rome, let it take responsibility for it".
    "We leave the council seats to the PD's one-party government," Cento said. "We were not satisfied with the meeting, and decided to remain outside the council".
    Cento added that "a competition" is underway between SEL and the PD.
    "If these issues aren't resolved, we will maintain a relationship with Mayor Marino in which we will assess the situation on a case by case basis".