Paolo Gentiloni, Italian foreign minister, appointed PM

Paolo Gentiloni has been foreign minister since October 2014

Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni has been asked to form a government by the country's president.

President Sergio Mattarella has been looking for a replacement for centre-left PM Matteo Renzi, who resigned after losing a referendum on constitutional reform last week.

Mr Gentiloni (left) and Matteo Renzi (right) are close allies

Mr Gentiloni, 62, is a loyalist from Mr Renzi's Democratic Party. Correspondents say that if he is successful in rallying support a government could be formed in days.


In a brief acceptance speech, Mr Gentiloni said he realised the urgency of forming the government to reassure the country. He said he would work within the framework of the previous administration, making it likely that he will reappoint several ministers.

Paolo Gentiloni

• Born to an aristocratic family, has the title Nobile
• Worked as a journalist on an environmental magazine
• Elected to parliament in 2001
• Communications minister from 2006-08
• Appointed foreign minister in 2014

Mr Gentiloni faces a banking crisis and a rise in popular support for anti-establishment and eurosceptic parties. Opposition parties have ruled out joining a national unity government, with the populist Five Star Movement saying it will boycott a parliamentary approval vote, due to take place on Wednesday, because it would have not legitimacy.

The party has called for immediate elections, currently due to be held in May 2018. However, President Mattarella has said the current electoral rules must be revised so both houses of parliament are synchronised.

The law was changed to the so-called "Italicum" system last year to give the leading party a parliamentary majority through bonus seats in the lower Chamber of Deputies. But there has been no such change in the Senate, which is elected by proportional representation.

Senate reforms formed part of the package of reforms put to Italian voters last Sunday, while the legitimacy of the system for the Chamber of Deputies is to be ruled on in January.

Mr Renzi's plans for constitutional reform were rejected by a margin of 59% to 41%, prompting his decision to stand down.