New Italy PM Mario Draghi facing a vote of confidence in Senate today

Premier Mario Draghi easily won a confidence vote in Parliament’s upper chamber Wednesday night after vowing to do whatever it takes to lead Italy out of the coronavirus pandemic and rebuild its economy into a more sustainable and equitable one for future generations, Report informs, citing Varese News.

The Senate voted 262-40 with two abstentions to back Draghi’s technical-political government, which he formed at the request of Italy’s president to steer Italy through the health and economic crises. A confidence vote Thursday in the lower Chamber of Deputies is also expected to give Draghi broad backing since he has secured support from across Italy’s political spectrum.

Draghi told senators that Italy has a once-in-a-lifetime chance to rethink and rebuild the country, urging them to unite behind his government. He vowed will be environmentally conscious, staunchly pro-European, and oriented toward technological and digital reforms.

“Today, unity isn’t an option. It’s an obligation,“ Draghi said to applause as he outlined his government program. “An obligation guided by what unites us all: love of Italy.”

Draghi, the former European Central Bank chief who is widely credited with having saved the euro by declaring to do “whatever it takes” during the European debt crisis, pledged a similar all-out effort to bring Italy out of the pandemic. Since the virus first erupted in Italy last year, the country has reported over 94,000 deaths related to COVID-19, more than any other European country except Britain.

He said the principal aim of his administration was to confront the pandemic and save Italian lives “with all means,” including reinforcing the public health care system, bringing the civil protection and armed forces in to accelerate the nation’s vaccination campaign and ensuring that families can weather the economic fallout from lockdowns.

“The virus is the enemy of all of us,” said Draghi, 73, as he urged politicians to put aside their personal and political interests and assume the same spirit of sacrifice that their parents and grandparents took on after World War II.