Italian Vote to Show Public Opinion on Gov't, Not on Reform Proposal

The forthcoming referendum on changes to the Italian constitution proposed by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi will determine the public support for the government, rather than the support for the actual reform, as the population has little knowledge on the contents of the proposal, Italian Senator Francesco Palermo told Sputnik on Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On December 4, Italian citizens will vote on whether to overhaul their national constitution with suggestions to stripe the Senate of its current powers over the budget and its ability to bring down a government, cut number of senators to 100 from current 315 and change the process of their election, with senators to be hand-picked by the government from local councils across the country rather than elected directly.

"Had the reform be put to a popular vote two years ago, it would have been approved by an overwhelming majority. Also due to the complexity of the changes, most people have very little knowledge of the contents of the reform and the vote will be on the government rather than on the merit," Palermo, a member of Senate's Constitutional Affairs Committee from "For Autonomy" parties coalition, said.

Renzi, who initiated the reforms, has expressed hopes that suggested changes would speed the progress of legislation from drafting to implementation and would bring political stability to Italy, which has seen 63 governments since 1948. In summer, the prime minister promised to step down if voters reject his proposals to reform Italy's parliamentary system.