Italian senate approves austerity measures

ITALY’S senate last night approved the government’s disputed austerity package, aimed at reducing the country’s deficit by more than €54 billion over three years.

The upper chamber voted 165-141, with three abstentions, to approve the package, which was put to a confidence vote to ensure Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s allies united behind him after weeks of bickering over details of the plan.

Had the vote failed, Berlusconi would have been forced to resign, a prospect legislators clearly wanted to avoid, given the nervousness with which financial markets have viewed Italy’s ability to rein in its debt.