A government bill overturning Italy's moratorium on nuclear power has been approved by the lower chamber of the country's government and has been passed for approval to the country's Senate.
The bill, approved by the Camera dei Deputati on 4 November, was amended several times after much debate between the right-wing majority and the minority and also within the government itself. The amendments include a new deadline of 30 June 2009 for the government to find sites for new nuclear power plants, revised from the original deadline of December 2008 (the sites of Italy's shut down nuclear plants are no longer considered suitable); the establishment of a Nuclear Regulatory Agency, whose board will be named by the country's president in consultation with the prime minister and the government; and provision for the sites of the new plants to be subjected to military control if necessary.
