Berlusconi: Naples rubbish is new government's top priority (Roundup)

Apr 15, 2008, 15:27 GMT

A worker examines waste from Naples at the premises of the waste management company Abfallwirtschaft Westsachsen in Croebern near Leipzig, Germany, 08 April 2008. After a suspension of waste imports from southern Italy in the coming weeks some 35,00 tons instead of the approved 100,000 are expected to be disposed off at the facility until the permit runs out on 20 May 2008. EPA/WALTRAUD GRUBITSCH

Rome - Italy's prime minister-elect Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday announced his future government's first task: clearing piles of rubbish from the streets of Naples.

'I imagine I'll spend at least three days a week in Naples, at least until the refuse problem has been resolved,' the billionaire-turned-politician said in a radio interview with state-owned broadcaster RAI.

He also announced plans to hold his first cabinet meeting in the southern port city where rubbish has gone uncollected for months after landfill sites became full.

The crisis began around Christmas and has damaged Italy's reputation as a tourist destination. Reports of contaminated milk also tainted the city's famous mozzarella cheese.

Berlusconi who triumphed in elections held Saturday and Monday said he planned to unveil the government he intends to present for approval before parliament 'by the end of the week.'

He tapped the European Union's current top justice official, Franco Frattini, as possible foreign minister - a position Frattini held in 2002-2004 under a previous centre-right government.

The flamboyant politician also said he intends to include in his cabinet Giulio Tremonti, who acted as economy minister in previous Berlusconi governments.

He also promised to appoint 'at least' four women to his 12-strong cabinet.

A likely female candidate as justice minister is lawyer Giulia Bongiorno, a member of former prime minister Giulio Andreotti's defence team in several Mafia-related trials.

The post-fascist National Alliance's Ignazio La Russa was also being touted as possible defence minister. His party leader, Gianfranco Fini, was being tipped to become speaker of parliament.

Berlusconi also began to turn his attention towards relations with other nations.

The first foreign statesman that Berlusconi called was fellow conservative Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president.

And in Moscow the Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin, plans to travel to Italy on April 17-18 with a stop-over at Berlusconi's sprawling villa in Sardinia.

US President George W Bush, whose decision to invade Iraq in 2003 Berlusconi supported, also called to offer Italy's prime minister- elect congratulations.

Berlusconi won the elections with around 47 per cent of all votes cast, nine percentage points ahead of his main rival, Walter Veltroni of the centre-left Democratic Party.

The results gave Berlusconi's centre-right coalition a comfortable tally of 171 seats out of a total of 322 in the upper house, the Senate.

Berlusconi's People of Freedom party and its main ally, the Northern League, also have a commanding majority in the lower house Chamber of Deputies after capturing 340 seats out of a total of 630.

Both houses of the newly elected parliament need to convene and choose their relative speakers, before Napolitano can formally ask Berlusconi to form a government.

The new government will then need to face a vote of confidence in parliament.