Italy: Salvini asked about kissing of rosary during Conte resignation speech

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Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini and former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi commented on events that unfolded during a heated Senate session at which Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced his resignation, in Rome on Tuesday.

"What surprised me is that I expected a President of the Council [Conte], I tried hard to do it in half the time and with half the role, to design the Italy of the next 30 years, not to accuse the interior minister of being the worst danger to democracy in Europe," said Salvini.

Conte made multiple remarks about Salvini while announcing his resignation and scolded him for using Christian symbols in his campaigns, which he says does not reflect the secular status of the government. The interior minister responded to this afterwards, saying: "can I go to the chamber with the rosary of the Madonna of Medjugorie without anyone being offended and considering it a danger to democracy?"

Salvini apparently denied exhibiting the rosary in the chamber, despite images emerging appearing to show him kissing a set of Catholic prayer beads during Conte's resignation speech.

Renzi for his part said he was alarmed at the potential impact on the economy. "You can't open a crisis in the dark, in the middle of August and risk increasing VAT. If the VAT increases it is a recession for Italy. It is a dramatic thing: not realising that merchants, artisans, families risk paying the bill, a really costly bill for this choice is an irresponsible act."

Last week Salvini filed a motion of no-confidence against Conte in the hope that it would lead to snap elections, following a disagreement with his coalition partners, the Five Star Movement (M5S). The Senate decided to have Conte address them first, during which he announced his resignation.

Following consultations, Italian President Sergio Mattarella will have to decide whether to go ahead with new elections or try and have a new government formed from existing parliamentary parties.

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