Salvini Eyes Enhanced Powers as Italy Government Wins Key Vote

(Bloomberg) -- Matteo Salvini, Italy's de facto leader, gained new powers to curb immigration while tightening his grip on the government, as the populist coalition won a key vote in parliament.

Parliament's upper chamber gave final approval to security legislation Salvini has been calling for ever since his League party scored a resounding victory in European elections in May.

Though the result -- with the Senate passing the proposal with 160 votes in favor -- was a victory for the leader of the League party, it again highlighted tensions between Salvini and populist rival Luigi Di Maio of the Five Star Movement, nominally the senior partner in the ruling coalition, but now polling at less than half the League's level.

In a Facebook message after the vote, Salvini thanked all Italians and the Virgin Mary.

The security package, among other measures, gives Italy's police and military enhanced powers to stop and seize rescue vessels picking up illegal migrants in the Mediterranean. In addition to serving as one of Italy's two deputy premiers, Salvini also runs the interior ministry, which controls the country's police and border forces.

Ramping Up Pressure

Had the government lost the vote, it could have paved the way to possible new elections. Salvini has been ramping up threats to quit the coalition and force an early vote if his partners don't help deliver on League priorities. “We're not in the government to waste time,” Salvini said during a public appearance Monday.

In a move widely viewed as yet another concession to Salvini, Conte recently backed a rail link with France that Five Star had long opposed. But the real fight will likely be over Italy's 2020 budget in the fall.

“I don't want to give Italians more months of fighting,” Salvini said in an interview with Radio 24 on Tuesday. Governing with Five Star has become “more difficult” over the last few months, the deputy premier said.

Finance Minister Giovanni Tria is aiming to keep Italy's deficit below 1.8% of gross domestic product, daily la Repubblica reported Monday, though that would leave limited space for the deep tax cuts Salvini has promised.

--With assistance from Sonia Sirletti and Dan Liefgreen.

To contact the reporters on this story: Alessandro Speciale in Rome at aspeciale@bloomberg.net;Chiara Albanese in Rome at calbanese10@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Gordon at pgordon6@bloomberg.net, Jerrold Colten, Richard Bravo

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