A no confidence motion filed by the opposition against Tourism Minister Daniela Santanchè amidst several criminal probes will be discussed in the House next Wednesday, April 3, caucus chiefs decided Wednesday.
Santanchè faces several probes that may result in prosecutionand she has said she would quit if she were prosecuted.
In the most serious case, she could face charges of aggravated fraud against the Italian national pensions and social security institute INPS over alleged irregular management of funds made available for redundancy payments during the Covid-19 pandemic, following a probe into allegedly improper business practices related to her former Visibilia publishing empire.
News of the investigation emerged last summer after investigative journalism program Report on Rai 3 reported thatbusinesses linked to Santanche', a leading member of PremierGiorgia Meloni's right-wing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party,allegedly failed to pay suppliers and dismissed workers without giving them redundancy payments , as well as allegedly improperly receiving COVID aid, prompting calls for her to quit.
The 62-year-old minister, who sold her stake in Visibilia when she became minister, has denied all wrongdoing.
She has said she is innocent and has vowed to clear her name if the cases come to court.
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