In a boost for Premier Romano Prodi, Italians on Monday rejected sweeping constitutional and devolutionary reforms drawn up by the government of his predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi.
The final vote tally showed that 61.7% were against the reforms, which would have boosted the powers of the premier and introduced greater autonomy for Italy's 20 regions. The 'no' vote won in all regions except the northern, centre-right strongholds of Lombardy and Veneto. Turnout in the two-day referendum, which ended at 15.00 local time, was unexpectedly high at 53.6%, with more people voting in the north than in the south.
Prodi and his nine-party coalition had urged Italians to throw out the amendments one-sidedly approved by Berlusconi's government in November 2005. Since the amendments did not gain the two-thirds support in parliament needed for legislation affecting the 1948 Constitution, they could not have been implemented unless Italians approved them.
Prodi expressed his satisfaction on Monday, stressing that cross-party consensus was required for such important reforms.
"It is now our duty to open dialogue with all political parties and discuss together the adjustments that should be made to the Constitution," said the centre-left leader. "Constitutional reforms must only be carried out with the broadest agreement possible and not rammed through by one side," said the former European Commission chief, who won the narrowest of victories against Berlusconi in the April general election.
Berlusconi had campaigned heavily in favour of a 'yes' vote, at one point suggesting that those who voted 'no' were not worthy to be Italian. Some members of the centre left had feared high turnout in the north, where 60.35% of those eligible voted compared to 42.6% in the south, could swing the vote in Berlusconi's favour because of the devolutionary aspect.
The reforms would have devolved greater powers to Italy's regions in the areas of health, education and local policing.
These amendments were the key condition set by the small federalist Northern League for maintaining its support for Berlusconi's government and appealed to many voters in the more affluent regions of the north. In Lombardy and Veneto, the 'yes' vote beat the 'no' vote by 54.6% and 55.3% respectively. The 'no' vote increased from the northern regions of Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany down, hitting 74.8% in the south.
Some political analysts said the outcome could weaken Berlusconi's hold over the centre right and his coalition by leading the Northern League to quit its support. But League leader Umberto Bossi told reporters on Monday evening that "it's a bit sad... but we will carry on nonetheless".
The reforms would also have increased the powers of the premier, making the head of government a directly elected figure with the power to hire and fire ministers, propose that parliament be dissolved and call elections. With the present system, only parliament can dismiss a minister via a no-confidence vote, while it is up to the president to dissolve parliament and call elections.
The reforms would have reformed parliament by transforming the Senate into a federal rather than a national legislative body and ending the need for both chambers to approve legislation. Only major bills in the areas of electoral reform and social and civil rights would have required joint approval.
The number of parliamentarians would also have been cut, from 630 to a maximum of 521 in the House and from 315 to 252 in the Senate. The Constitutional Court would have been reshaped too so that regional interests were represented.
The government was staunchly opposed to the overhaul, arguing that Italy's underdeveloped southern regions would be penalised by the devolutionist part. It also said the other measures would have created a too-powerful premiership, weakened parliament and risked lengthening legislative procedures by creating conflicts between the two chambers of parliament.
The centre left said that once the referendum was over, the two coalitions should open talks aimed at reaching consensus on constitutional reforms. But the centre right argued that since most of the reforms were not due to enter into effect until 2016, they should first be approved as a starting point and then if necessary improved.
It said the reforms would benefit Italy's regions while making them more accountable. It said the bill as a whole would modernise and streamline the country's institutions and give it greater government stability by introducing a stronger premiership.
In its 'yes' campaign, the centre right spotlighted the amendment reducing the number of MPs. However, this reform would again only have been introduced in 2016. The text of the Italian Constitution has been amended 13 times and three parliamentary commissions have been convened (in 1983-1985, 1992-1994 and 1997-1998) with the aim of preparing major revisions. They all fell through in the end because the necessary political consensus was missing.
In October 2001, Italy held its first constitutional referendum when voters upheld a last-minute pro-devolutionary reform pushed through by the centre left, which governed from 1996 until May 2001 and then lost to Berlusconi.
