The Economist (20200926) by calibre

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Language: eng
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Tags: news, The Economist
Publisher: calibre
Published: 2020-09-25T18:36:34.667000+00:00

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This article was downloaded by calibre from https://www.economist.com/europe/2020/09/26/ukraines-anti-corruption-court-bares-its-teeth

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Circus minimised

Italians vote for fewer, better politicians

After a referendum, parliament is to be cut down to size

Sep 26th 2020 | ROME

IT IS NOT often that voters get a chance to cut politicians down to size. But on September 20th-21st, Italy’s did—and they seized the opportunity with both hands. By a whopping majority of 70% to 30%, they opted in a referendum to slash the number of lawmakers by more than a third. The lower house (the Chamber of Deputies) will have 400 members, down from 630, while the upper one will have 200 elected senators rather than 315. The reform also capped at five the number of presidentially nominated senators-for-life.

The new law will take effect after the next general election, which does not have to be until 2023 though it may come earlier. It will not affect the generous salaries and perks of Italy’s parliamentarians. Nor does it tackle a more fundamental problem: that the two houses have identical functions. Still, it brings the ratio of voters to lawmakers to around the same level as in Germany and represents a triumph for anti-politics, the distrust of a governing elite whose members are seen by many Italians as pampered, corruptible and virtually impossible to dislodge. Anti-politics was an important reason for the rise of the maverick Five Star Movement (M5S), which sponsored the reform.

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