The Sewing Circle Rumor Mill Is At It Again

The latest from the FT says that the Italian government is on the "Brink of collapse", after having been sternly warned by Finance Ministers at Sunday's EU summit, to move forward with promised reforms.

Silvio Berlusconi’s center-right coalition government appears to be in danger of collapsing over implementation of the reforms which the EU expected to be in place by Wednesday. The EU ministers are saying that Italy's lack of implementation of these reforms could hold them back from coming to a comprehensive solution to the EU problems by their intended target date of Wednesday. It almost sound as if a scapegoat is being set up-Italy.


The reforms are threatening (so says the FT) to tear apart Berlusconi's coalition government.


The FT article says that Berlusconi and the Northern League Coalition are unable to resolve a deadlock over pension reform


The Northern League coalition is opposed to raising the retirement age from 65 to 67 and threatens to bring down Berlusconi's government for the second time, the first time being in 1994 a few months after it was created.


We'll see where the next rumor lands on the subject.