‘Napolitano, ultimatum to the parties’

As new second-time president of the Italian Republic Giorgio Napolitano took his oaths of office, he delivered a harsh scolding to the nation’s political parties for failing to fulfil their responsibilities.

Napolitano, 87, is expected to approve the formation of a unity government, which will include the Democratic Party (PD), former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party (PDL) and outgoing PM Mario Monti’s Scelta Civica, before the end of this week. However, Napolitano warned that if parties keep proving “deaf” to the need for urgent reforms he could resign his post.

Meanwhile, local elections in the north eastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia gave some relief to an embattled PD, whose candidate, Debora Serracchiani Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement surprisingly took less than 20 per cent, losing 7 per cent of the vote compared to its performance in the February general election.