Italy’s president has asked Matteo Renzi to stay on as Italy’s prime minister until the country’s budget law is passed in parliament, extending his stay at the helm of the Italian government for possibly a week.
At a meeting in the presidential palace in Rome, Mr Renzi expressed his intention to resign after suffering a bruising defeat in a constitutional reform referendum held on Sunday. But Sergio Mattarella, the Italian head of state, asked him to freeze the resignation until the budget is approved, according to a statement from Mr Mattarella’s office.
One Italian official said the budget could be approved within a week, after which Mr Mattarella would begin the formal talks on picking a new prime minister. The 2017 budget law has been passed in the lower chamber but not yet in the senate.