Matteo Renzi resignation: Italy PM meets president after defeat

OUTGOING Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has met the country’s president following a heavy defeat in a constitutional referendum on Sunday.
Mr Renzi, who resigned after the vote, and President Sergio Mattarella will be anxious to ease fears of instability and a deeper crisis for Italy’s troubled banking sector.
President Mattarella must either appoint a new PM or trigger elections, BBC said.
European politicians reacted calmly to the result, saying there was no crisis.
Meanwhile financial markets have stabilised after initial falls on news of Mr Renzi’s defeat.
However, there are concerns about Italy’s fragile economy in the longer term.
Though Mr Renzi has already met Mr Mattarella, he will not hand in his resignation to him until after a final cabinet meeting due to take place at 18:30 local time (17:30 GMT).
The president may ask him to stay on at least until parliament has passed a budget bill due later this month, but this seems unlikely in view of the scale of his defeat.
In spite of the pressure from the opposition, early elections are also thought to be unlikely.
Instead, the president may appoint a caretaker administration led by Mr Renzi’s Democratic Party, which would carry on until an election due in the spring of 2018.
Finance Minister Pier Carlo Padoan is the favourite to succeed Mr Renzi as prime minister.
With most ballots counted, the No vote leads with 60 per cent against 40 per cent for Yes, with a 70 per cent turnout, a heavier than expected defeat for the government.
Mr Renzi staked his political future on his attempt to change Italy’s cumbersome political system. He wanted to strengthen central government and weaken the Senate, the upper house of parliament.