Italy`s new government wins first confidence vote

Rome: Italy`s new government has easily won a confidence vote of confirmation in the lower house of Parliament. Premier Enrico Letta`s coalition of rival political blocs won the backing of the Chamber of Deputies tonight in a mandatory confidence vote on his coalition. The Chamber voted 453 to approve the government, and 153 voted no. The government faces a required second vote tomorrow in the Senate, where Letta`s center-left forces don`t have the majority.

But media mogul Silvio Berlusconi`s center-right party, which is part of the tense coalition government, is expected to give Letta sufficient backing. Earlier, Letta told the Chamber`s lawmakers he intended to lower the tax burden on Italians in hopes of stimulating economic growth. PTI