Italy's PM says coalition not facing showdown over graft case

ROME: Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Monday he was confident ruling parties would find an agreement over a graft scandal involving a junior minister from the League, avoiding a showdown that might pull the coalition apart.

"It won't come down to a vote count", Conte said, referring to a cabinet meeting set to discuss the case on Wednesday.

The anti-establishment 5-Star Movement has been piling pressure on its right-wing government partner the League to force the junior Infrastructure Minister Armando Siri to resign, but League chief Matteo Salvini has so far refused to do so.