The whips of the parties supporting
Premier Giorgia Meloni's government said Tuesday that the
coalition's lawmakers have been told to cast blank papers in a
parliamentary vote to elect a new member of the Constitutional
Court.
Italy's opposition parties had already said they would snub the
vote as the ruling majority had been expected to put forward the
name of Francesco Saverio Marini, an advisor on legal affairs to
Meloni.
"The opposition has decided to transform even the election of
constitutional judges into a field of political propaganda," the
ruling coalition's whips said.
"They decided to desert the Chamber despite the need to replace
a Constitutional Court justice after 10 months.
"Despite them, the ruling majority has decided to continue to
respect the institutions and today casts blank papers".
The Constitutional Court's decisions often regard political
issues.
For example, it is soon set to rule on whether the government's
law bringing in 'differentiated autonomy' to enable regions to
request more power over how the tax revenues collected in their
areas are spent is compatible with the Constitution.
"Faced with an act of force on something that his fundamental
for democratic guarantees, we won't take part in the vote,"
Democratic Party (PD) leader Elly Schlein told Sky television in
relation to the Marini move, stressing that the centre-left
group has agreed on this stance with other opposition parties.
"Meloni cannot have the attitude of being the owner of the
institutions".
PD Senate whip Francesco Boccia said the government coalition
was guilty of "provocation".
"We are respond to their blitz with democratic instruments and
our behaviour is inevitable in the face of the ruling majority's
behaviour," he said.
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