(ANSA) - A controversial bill increasing the powers of the premier and Italy's 20 regions was approved by the House on Thursday amid heated protests by the centre-left opposition. The reform is "tragic" and "deals an effective blow to the (country's) constitution," said opposition leader Romano Prodi.
Italians neither "understand the reason" for the revisions to the constitution nor "do they want it," he said. But Premier Silvio Berlusconi hailed the bill's approval saying it will "modernise the state" and "remedy the damage caused by reforms introduced by the centre left" when it was in power.
Berlusconi accused Prodi of using language "not suitable to political debate but rather to civil war." The bill, approved 317 for, 234 against and five absentions, now goes to the Senate for a second and definitive approval. This was the bill's second passage in the House, following its preliminary approval in a vote last October. As with all constitutional reforms, the draft legislation must be approved twice in each chamber of parliament, with three months between each vote by the same chamber.
The bill's second passage in the House was a swifter affair as lawmakers were not able to modify the text and were simply called to vote for or against the reform document as a whole. Since the reform is also expected not to muster the required two-thirds majority, it will have to be put to a public referendum.
Berlusconi told reporters he was convinced "Italians would say yes" when asked to approve the constitutional changes.
The bill has repeatedly fuelled tensions between the governing coalition and the opposition, and in the past had created divisions within the centre right. But the House's green light on Wednesday was "strong proof of the majority's unity" Berlusconi said. The leader of the opposition centrist Daisy party Francesco Rutellu blasted the government for making such important changes to the constitution "in such a bullish way," without the opposition's involvement.
Such sweeping reforms are normally hammered out with opposition consensus but the government has rammed its project through parliament, Rutelli said.
CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION
The governing coalition argues that the proposals will breathe fresh life into Italy's institutions, strengthen the executive and produce greater governability. But the opposition hotly accuses the premier, a billionaire media tycoon, of trying to accrue more powers for himself.
The current constitution was drawn up in 1948 and includes a series of barriers, with its separation of powers and system of checks and balances, designed to prevent the emergence of another Benito Mussolini, Italy's Fascist dictator.
The opposition also accused Berlusconi of yielding to the demands of a small devolutionist party in his coalition, the Northern League, which is battling to see greater powers devolved from the State to Italy's regional governments. The populist League, which brought down Berlusconi's first 1994 government but gained under 4% of the vote in the May 2001 elections, has repeatedly threatened to quit the government over the issue.
Four key changes underpin the reform plan: increasing the powers of the premier while trimming those of the president; transforming the Senate into a federal rather than a national legislative body; introducing greater federalism; and reforming the Constitutional Court so regional interests are represented.
If the bill were to become law, the premier would be directly elected by voters and given the powers to hire and fire ministers, propose that parliament be dissolved and call elections. With the present system, only parliament can dismiss a minister via a no-confidence vote, while it is up to the president to dissolve parliament and call elections.
The government says a stronger premier would provide greater stability in Italy, which has gone through 58 governments since the end of the Second World War. The bill would also sharply reduce the number of lawmakers, with the House dropping from 630 deputies to 500 including 18 voted by Italians living abroad; and the Senate from 315 senators to 252.
Age limits would be lowered from 25 to 21 for the House and from 40 to 25 for the Senate. The age limit for the president's office would also be reduced from 50 to 40.
On the issue of federalism, the bill would devolve health, education and local policing powers to the regions. The Senate would be given the definitive say on laws involving the regions but the government would be given the right to block a regional law deemed damaging to national interests.
The House, meanwhile, would have the final say on laws regarding the State such as foreign, defence and justice policies.
The two chambers would legislate on an equal footing with laws regarding social policy and civil rights. The Constitutional Court, the supreme arbiter of Italian justice, would retain its 15 members but they would be appointed differently. Under the current system, five are appointed by the president, five by parliament in joint session and five by the highest law and administrative
courts. Instead, four would be appointed by the president, four by the courts and seven by parliament.
