Wednesday 9 November 2011

Fin des Jeux

So, after all the heart-searching, the constitutional consultations, the references to past crisis solutions, the suggested names:  Monti, Letta, Alfano - even Amato,  the possible forms the crisis government could take: 'technical', government of national unity, early elections.  All this and now we have the answer.

The post-Berlusconi administration will be led by -  Berlusconi.   And the form of the administration will be a coalition of his (scattered and shrunken) party and the Northern Leagues.   Their purpose?  Ad hominem  legislation for the interruption of legal proceedings against Berlusconi; special statuses for his family companies; generalised assaults upon the powers and independence of the judiciary. Social butchery in the name of Europe will come as a bonus, laying the ground for recast labour relations, the hollowing out of social security (in the best meaning of the term) for all from the youngest to the oldest; the extensive mulcting of the working population in higher taxes.

How do we know?  Berlusconi tried some of it with the Decree that President Napolitano refused to sign, requiring that such measures must be agreed first by Parliament.  This new Berlusconi  Executive will divide the factious opposition readily, and now has the opportunity to scoop the board.

He's even got the European Union, the European Central Bank and the IMF to help him.

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