Italian Government

Parliament Legislative power Parliament is elected directly by the people 2 chambers: depute and senate Elects the President of the Republic They make the laws Laws must be approved in the same text by both chambers

Deputy and Senate Not held responsible for what they say in the chambers because they must speak their mind They can not be arrested unless they are caught in the act by the authorities or without the authorization of the chamber

Deputy 630 deputees Must be 18 to vote for deputy Must be 25 to become a duputy

Senate 315 senators Plus some “senators for life” including ex presidents and up to 5 elected by the president Must be 25 to vote for senators Must be 40 to become a senator

President of the Republic The president can reelect the chambers Separate from parliament and government Can stop a law approved by parliament, but only once Can nominate the Prime Minister (President of the Council) The current president is Giorgio Napolitano

Government Composed of prime minister and the ministers Executive power Needs trust of the parliament They make acts that are as strong as laws: Law by decree and Legislative decree

Law by Decree Are issued by the government in case of emergency Valid for 60 days Must be converted into law by the end of the 60 days to be valid forever If they are not converted they lose power until

Legislative Decree Issued by the government on delegation by the parliament Parliament has to approve a delegation law to allow the government to make the decree Parliament decides how long they have to make the decree and the subject of the decree

Prime Minister Proposes the ministers but has equal power with them Can not expel the ministers Represents the government The current Prime Minister of Italy is Mario Monti

Ministers 19 ministers in current government Every government has a different number Divided by subjects Nominated by the President of the Republic and purposed by the Prime Minister