Italian Parliament resumes business after Prodi victory

Italy’s Parliament today resumed business for the first time since Romano Prodi’s coalition narrowly won elections earlier this month, with legislative sessions that will test his partners’ ability to stay united.

The members of the new Chamber of Deputies gathered first to begin voting for its president, who is likely to be Prodi’s ally, Communist leader Fausto Bertinotti. However, parliamentary officials said the voting would probably stretch into tomorrow.

The Chamber opened with a minute of silence in honour of the victims of yesterday’s bombing in southern Iraq in which three Italian troops and one Romanian were killed, and one Italian soldier was seriously wounded.

Prodi’s main challenge is in the Senate, where his candidate for president - Franco Marini, a centrist and former labour leader – faces the choice of outgoing Premier Silvio Berlusconi’s coalition – former Christian Democrat premier Giulio Andreotti.

The margin for Prodi’s coalition is tighter in the Senate than in the lower Chamber of Deputies.