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| President of the Council of Ministers of Italy | |
 Flag of the President of the Council of Ministers |
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| Residence | Chigi Palace |
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| Term length | 5-year maximum |
| Inaugural holder | Camillo Benso, count of Cavour |
| Formation | 23 March 1861 |
| Website | www.governo.it |
In Italy, the Prime Minister of Italy (officially the President of the Council of Ministers, Italian: Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri) is the country's head of government. According to the formal Italian order of precedence, the position of prime minister is ceremonially the fourth most important Italian state office; however, in reality, the prime minister is the most powerful and thus truly most important person in the Italian government. This situation mirrors the position of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and indeed that of most other prime ministers.
The prime minister is a constitutional office, established by articles 92, 93, 94, 95, and 96 of the Italian Constitution. The prime minister is appointed by the President. The current prime minister is Silvio Berlusconi.
The seat of the government is in Palazzo Chigi, located at Piazza Colonna in Rome.
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Official title
The title of Italy's head of government in Italian is Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri. Literally translated, this means "President of the Council of Ministers". However, because "prime minister" or "premier" is the more usual title in a parliamentary system for a head of government in English-speaking nations, the head of the Italian government is ususally referred to by English speakers as the "Prime Minister of Italy".
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Functions
In addition to powers inherent in being a member of the cabinet, the prime minister holds specific powers, the most notable of which include the nomination of a list of cabinet ministers to be appointed by the President of the Republic and the countersigning of all legislative instruments having the force of law that are signed by the President of the Republic.
Article 95 of the Italian constitution provides that "the prime minister directs and coordinates the activity of the ministers". This power has been used to a quite variable extent in the history of the Italian state, as it is strongly influenced by the political strength of individual ministers and thus by the parties they represent.
Often the prime minister's activity consists more in mediating between the various parties in the majority coalition, rather than directing the activity of the Council of Ministers. In addition, the prime minister's supervisory power is further limited by the fact that, at least formally, he or she does not have the authority to fire those ministers with whom he or she might be in disagreement. The practice of rimpasto ("reshuffle"), or the rarer "individual vote of no confidence" on the part of Parliament, may be considered substitute measures for this formally absent power.
More recently, the rise of a new mode of politics, which according to some is ever more linked to the mediating skills of politicians, and the enactment of majoritarian electoral laws have, in practice, given the prime minster a greater power to make decisions and to direct the internal dynamics of the government. This represents a notable novelty for the Italian political system.
The prime minister also chairs the COPACO, a committee for the co-ordination of Italian intelligence agencies.
See also
- List of prime ministers of Italy
- List of Presidents of the Italian Republic
- Italian Minister of the Interior
- Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Italian Minister of Defense
- Italian Minister of Justice
- Italian Minister of Public Instruction
- Italian Minister of Health
- Italian Minister of Economy and Finance
- Italian Minister of Public Works
- Italian Minister of Transports
- Italian Minister of Economic Development
- Politics of Italy
- History of Italy
- Lists of incumbents
 The seat of the Council of ministers. |
 Logo of the Italian Government |
References
- This article was translated from the equivalent article in Italian Wikipedia, retrieved 16 April 2006.
External links
- Website of the Prime Minister of Italy (President of the Council of Ministers)
- List of Italian Prime Ministers, with information on length of term and party membership
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Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 14 October 2008, at 22:04.
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