Bersani admits defeat in forming new Italian government

The leader of Italy s centre-left Democratic Party Pier Luigi Bersani has admitted defeat in trying to form a government, Euronews reported Friday. Bersani told the country s president, Giorgio Napolitano, that he does not have enough support. Napolitano will now step in and call in party leaders on Friday for consultations. I have informed the president of the work I have done over the past few days, which has not concluded with any clear result. I have informed him of the problems and obstructions which I found unacceptable. In this light the president has decided to go ahead himself to immediately sound out the relevant parties and check for himself, said Bersani. Starting with Silvio Berlusconi, other leaders will be asked on Friday if they want to try. Political wild card Bepe Grillo said Italy could get by without a government, with parliament managing things. Even Bersani may get another chance, or the president may nominate a prime minister to try and obtain a consensus around policies of his choosing, like electoral reform and the nomination of a new president, so Italy could have an interim administration pending fresh elections.