What Monti said in the Moscow interview is in any case a significant declaration of principle: the government and the prime minister remain in their posts to fulfill what the head of state has entrusted them with the mandate for: countering the financial crisis and restoring dignity to the country by tackling the general problems of the state, which primarily concern the younger generations and cannot be more or less foreseeable or anticipated electoral deadlines.
For the rest, the possibility of elections in the autumn, while not desirable, is far from unusual; it is one of the possibilities that politics and institutions have to deal with. The latest parliamentary votes, starting with that on the fiscal compact, have shown that, especially the PDL, it has enormous difficulties in guaranteeing a compact vote on the tests to which the Monti government is called. First of all, the strong divisions within the party, the uncertainty about Berlusconi's future (Will he be a candidate? And above all, will a candidacy from him be accepted by the whole party?). But it is the individual parliamentarians of the right-wing party, who have no guarantee of a possible re-election, who send out negative signals every day, of which in the end the real target is the government and the majority that supports it.
This is the uncertain picture facing the Prime Minister and the Quirinale. Reason why elections in the autumn cannot be ruled out. The question of the electoral law also comes into this context. The Quirinal demands the overcoming of the Porcellum. A system which, moreover, would now especially damage the centre-right. The parties say they are ready to make the new law. But uncertainty dominates the contents and when it comes to tightening, everyone pulls the blanket from their side. And so, despite declarations of principle and promises, a shared text is still not in sight.
Now the prospect of voting in the autumn could give a boost to the reform that the country is demanding and that the parties say they want to implement. But in order for the new law to be voted in the autumn, it is essential that at least one of the two houses of Parliament approves it before the summer break. It is still possible, but the uncertainties and delaying maneuvers of the parties have so far slowed everything down. The hypothesis of elections soon could and should make these maneuvers fail.
We will see. For now, while the market's attack on Italy continues, the only reassurance comes from Monti's declarations in Moscow: the government is doing its duty and thinking about the interests of the new generations. The rest, unfortunately, belongs to others.
