KEY POINTS:
In a last-ditch attempt to spare Italy an early general election, the Italian President has asked the Speaker of the Senate, Franco Marini, to see if he can muster a majority of MPs to back a Government with the task of passing a new electoral law.
But there was grave scepticism about the chances of Marini prevailing on the highly fragmented MPs to come together in a caretaker Government, even for a limited period.
If he fails, President Giorgio Napolitano is likely to have no alternative but to call early elections, expected for April at the soonest.
Media magnate Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister until 2006 and now leader of the opposition, has been demanding elections since the fall of Romano Prodi's Government last week.
In a recent opinion poll, Berlusconi's centre-right coalition had a lead of about 15 per cent over the centre-left led by Prodi.
- INDEPENDENT
