Premier Silvio Berlusconi's government on Friday easily won a confidence vote in the Senate on the government's ¤22 billion (US$25.7 billion) budget for next year. The government had called the confidence vote to ensure swift passage of the law, which includes revenue-raising measures and spending cuts. If the government had lost the vote, it would have been forced to resign, according to a report of The Associated Press. The measures are part of the government's effort to cut the budget deficit to 3.8 percent of gross domestic product next year, as agreed with the European Union. The European Commission has given Italy until 2007 to bring its deficit back to the 3 percent limit required by the EU's Stability and Growth Pact. Italy breached it in 2003 and 2004. The budget deficit is targeted at 4.3 percent of GDP this year. Italian governments frequently resort to confidence votes to force through legislation by closing government ranks and brushing aside amendments. The budget must still be approved by the Chamber of Deputies, Italy's lower house of parliament. Berlusconi's coalition enjoys a comfortable majority in both houses of parliament. The vote in the Senate was 158 in favor and 96 against. The government must approve its 2006 budget by the end of the year.
