THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Silvio Berlusconi has resigned as Italy's longest-serving post-war prime minister, bringing to an end a tumultuous, 17-year political career which was marred by sex scandals, corruption allegations and gaffes on the international stage.
His departure came hours after the country's lower house of parliament approved, by a margin of 380 votes to 26, an urgently-needed package of economic reforms designed to tackle the country's €1.9 trillion debt, revive its sluggish economy and prevent it from going the way of Greece.
After the vote, the 75-year-old billionaire media baron held a final meeting with his cabinet, and was then driven home to his official residence. There he consulted with party advisers, the final step before going to the presidential palace, on Rome's Quirinale Hill, where he gave his resignation to Italy's 86-year-old president, Giorgio Napolitano, a former Communist.
The president released a statement saying that consultations on forming a new government would start on Sunday.
Mr Berlusconi’s conservative PDL party said it was willing to accept an emergency government run by Mario Monti, an economist and former European Commissioner, so long as it kept to a tight remit of implementing economic reforms.
The party also said it wanted the emergency government to be limited to a fixed term and demanded that it be consulted over the formation of a new cabinet. It was not immediately clear whether Mr Monti would be willing to accept such stringent conditions.
Earlier a crowd of about 5,000 people erupted into jeers and boos when Mr Berlusconi arrived at the palace in a cavalcade of cars with a police motorcycle escort shortly before 8pm GMT.
They shouted "mafioso" and "buffoon" as the prime minister swept into the main entrance of the building.
Some protesters shouted, "You should die" and "Silvio, **** off."
At one point a small crowd of choral singers sang "Hallelujah" in the cobbled piazza outside the palace. » | Nick Squires, Rome | Saturday, November 12, 2011
LE POINT: Italie: Silvio Berlusconi sort par la petite porte – L'ex-président du Conseil s'est éclipsé du pouvoir par une issue dérobée, samedi soir, afin d'éviter les milliers de personnes réunies pour saluer son départ. » | Le Point.fr | samedi 12 / dimanche 13 novembre 2011
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