(05/06/10) -

Confidence in Berlusconi Below 50% in Italy

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – A majority of Italians hold little trust in their prime minister, according to a poll by IPR Marketing published in La Repubblica. 54 per cent of respondents do not have confidence in Silvio Berlusconi.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – A majority of Italians hold little trust in their prime minister, according to a poll by IPR Marketing published in La Repubblica. 54 per cent of respondents do not have confidence in Silvio Berlusconi.

Italian voters renewed the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate in April 2008. Final results gave Berlusconi’s right-wing coalition—encompassing the Italian People of Freedom Party (PdL), the Northern League (LN), and the Movement for Autonomy (MPA)—344 seats in the lower house, and 174 seats in the upper house. The victory put an end to the government of the centre-left Union (Unione), headed by Romano Prodi.

Berlusconi was sworn in as the country’s new head of government in May 2008. He had previously served as prime minister from May 1994 to January 1995, and from June 2001 to May 2006.

In March 2009, the National Alliance (AN)—a political party with fascist roots—was officially dissolved and merged with Berlusconi’s PdL. The AN has been a steady supporter of the prime minister and was instrumental in Berlusconi’s latest electoral victory. AN leader Gianfranco Fini is the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies.

On Apr. 22, during a PdL congress, Fini accused Berlusconi of providing too much influence to the NL, declaring, "I don’t like the house that I helped to create." The statement led to a public shouting match between the two politicians.

On Apr. 23, LN leader Umberto Bossi predicted "a vertical collapse of the government and probably the end of the alliance between the PDL and the Northern League."

Polling Data

Do you have confidence in Silvio Berlusconi?