As elsewhere in Europe, Italy's voters and main parties of right and left have stampeded towards the centre ground. They are all for the market now. They all want to sell off the state. They all say they want to lower taxes, loosen the labour market and reform the pensions system. They all believe in "Europe". These days there are remarkably few serious doctrinal differences across Italy's political spectrum. It may seem surprising, then, that Mr Berlusconi says he is going to change the face of his country over the next five years in ways that would be inconceivable if the centre-left had stayed in power.
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