Following the resignation of Domenico Siniscalco from the post of Economy Minister, Italian Deputy Premier Giulio Tremonti has been appointed Economy minister.
Premier Silvio Berlusconi told a news conference the decision was approved unanimously by his centre-right coalition during a brief emergency meeting.
Suprisingly, Tremonti returns to the same job he was forced to leave 14 months ago after infighting in the coalition, prompted over his handling of the economy and in part by his clashes with Bank of Italy Governor Antonio Fazio.
Siniscalco also locked horns with Fazio, claiming he was damaging Italy's financial credibility by refusing to resign in the wake of a banking scandal.
Fazio is under fire for favouring an Italian bank over a foreign one in a takeover battle. Telephone wiretaps published this summer showed he was in unusually close contact with a banker whose takeover bid he was vetting.
Berlusconi, who had not openly sided with Siniscalco on the Fazio dispute, told the news conference the governor should resign, saying his continued presence at the central bank was "incompatible with national credibility."
The premier said Tremonti was leaving for Washington to represent Italy at G7 and International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington starting on Friday. Fazio, who has already left for Washington, is also scheduled to attend the meetings.
