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Italy vote is "message" of protest: European parliament chief

26 February 2013, 13:03 CET
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(BRUSSELS) - Italy's election results are a message of protest over the tough austerity policies pushed by some in the European Union, the head of the European Parliament said Tuesday.

"It is a very difficult result for the EU as a whole," said Martin Schulz, the German Social-Democrat president of the parliament. "People have expressed dissatisfaction with the situation."

"What happens in Italy affects us all," he said in an official response to the vote in which he pleaded strongly for Italy's political forces to find a way forward.

"We need a stable government in one of the most important countries in the EU," he added.

Stating that "every election is a message" Schulz said the Italian vote showed that "we need a combination of budgetary discipline and fiscal rigour, with investment in growth and employment."

"We must take this seriously. People are ready to make sacrifices, but not any cost."

He insisted however that Brussels was not to blame for budget cuts decided by the Italian government to meet debt and deficit targets set by EU leaders themselves.

"In the blame game, success is always the success of governments, failure is that of Brussels, which is not true, but the public perception is that," he said.


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