Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Monday 26 august 2019

While Italian pols fight, finance minister tries to reassure

By FRANCES D'EMILIO alition, predicted in an in- a coalition, despite sharp
Associated Press terview in Sunday's Corriere differences on who would
ROME (AP) — Italy's econo- della Sera newspaper that be premier.
my minister tried to reassure Italy's 2020 deficit will be Democratic Party chief Nic-
financial markets and citi- less than feared. ola Zingaretti challenged
zens as the nation's political Tria was quoted as saying the 5-Stars to agree to a
leaders struggled Sunday that even without addi- government whose planks
to form a new govern- tional measures, the deficit would be a clear break
ment hoping to avoid early for next year will be "sub- with those of the coalition
elections that could bring stantially lower than the 2.1 that just collapsed.
nationalist Matteo Salvini percent of GDP predicted" "Italians just wouldn't un-
and his hard-right forces to in the budget plan that derstand a mishmash" of
power. Premier Giuseppe Conte's the last government that
Giovanni Tria, non-partisan government envisioned in failed, Zingaretti told re-
Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte, right, arrives at the G-7 summit
in Biarritz, France, Sunday, Aug. 25, 2019. economy minister in the spring 2019. porters Sunday evening.
Associated Press just-collapsed populist co- Tria insisted there's "room to "We'll do everything to try
maneuver" to avoid an au- to find a possible solution,
tomatic sales tax hike that which, I won't deny, at this
would punish Italy's long- point hasn't been found,"
ailing economy. Zingaretti said. He called
He argued that two cam- on the 5-Star leaders to
paign promises that the meet with Democrats on
populist government had Monday to make some
enacted -- a guaranteed progress.
minimum income and an President Sergio Mattarel-
early retirement possibility la on Thursday said party
for workers -- had cost less leaders had asked for more
than feared. time for negotiations for a
He also cited greater rev- coalition government that
enues and lower interest can win a mandatory con-
on Italy's staggering pub- fidence vote in both cham-
lic debt as he dismissed as bers of Parliament.
"foolishness" talk of reces- But while he made clear
sion and "plunges in con- it was his duty to see if this
sumption" by consumers. Parliament could continue
Salvini triggered the col- under some solid govern-
lapse last week by yanking ment, Mattarella said Ital-
the support of his right-wing ians and financial markets
League party, which has need answers soon. If he
governed since June 2018 doesn't get them, start-
together with the anti-es- ing with a new round of
tablishment 5-Star Move- talks with party leaders this
ment. week, Mattarella will dis-
Whoever governs this fall solve Parliament and set
will have to make painful new elections this fall, some
budget cuts to meet Euro- 3 ½ years early.
pean Union expectations Meanwhile, Salvini, wor-
just as Salvini campaigns to ried that his coalition pull-
be premier on pledges that out might not give him the
he'll put "Italians first" ahead early elections he sought,
of EU interests. has dangled the possibil-
The 5-Stars and the opposi- ity of a return to governing
tion center-left Democrats with the 5-Stars, even sug-
were scrambling in closed- gesting another coalition
door discussions to see if headed by Conte.
they can cobble together q