EU officials warn Italy not to let politics ruin recovery

EU officials yesterday warned Italy not to let politics ruin recovery prospects and upset debt markets in a week that could signal the end of Erico Letta’s fragile five-month-old government.

Economic commissioner Olli Rehn and commission president José Manuel Barroso threw their weight behind Letta, who also appealed for stability this weekend before a Senate vote on Wednesday on whether Silvio Berlusconi should be expelled from parliament following a conviction for tax fraud.

“I believe it is of paramount importance to keep political stability in the country to ensure a recovery, mainly because the latest data show the economy remains relativity weak, without clearly indicating a return to growth,” Rehn told Italian business daily Il Sole 24 Ore.