|
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| Mr Berlusconi is determined to stay in
power |
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has resigned, but says he will
soon put together a new coalition.
He told the upper house of parliament that his party had a mandate to
lead until 2006 and it would do so.
President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi asked him to stay
on as caretaker prime
minister
, urging talks with allies.
Mr Berlusconi's centre-right coalition - Italy's longest serving
post-war government - was rocked by poor results in recent regional
elections.
Following a 40-minute meeting with the president, Mr Berlusconi told
reporters he would move quickly to form a new coalition.
"Thursday morning we will begin the consultations and they will be
finished at midday Friday," he said.
His government was plunged into crisis last week when the smallest of
the four parties in the coalition, the Union of Christian Democrats,
withdrew its four ministers.
Mr Berlusconi's main coalition partner, the
National Alliance, also threatened to quit. It believes current policies
are skewed
in favour of
the country's more prosperous north, represented in the coalition by the
Northern League.
Correspondents say assembling a new team may prove difficult, as Mr
Berlusconi risks alienating the Northern League if he gives more posts to
the National Alliance.
"We have written important pages in our country's history," Mr
Berlusconi said in his speech to the Senate, addressing the government
benches.
"With your confidence and your support, I am sure we will write many
more."
If Mr Berlusconi can form a new government he will avoid having to call
a general election a year ahead of schedule.
Mr Berlusconi has said he is determined to serve out his five-year
term, which ends next year.
Popular opposition to Italy's role in the war in Iraq and a struggling
economy have contributed to a decline in the prime minister's popularity.
The regional elections earlier this month saw the opposition win 11 of
the 13 regions up for re-election and about 54% of the vote.
(BBC) | 
Updated: 2005-04-21 08:59
