ROME — Mario Draghi, the former head of the European Central Bank, confirmed on Friday he was ready to form Italy’s next government and unveiled a cabinet with a mix of technocrats and politicians from his broad coalition.

President Sergio Mattarella asked Draghi to be prime minister after party wrangling brought down the previous administration, and set him the task of tackling the coronavirus health crisis and economic meltdown.

Following a week of consultations, almost all the main parties from across the political spectrum pledged their support to Draghi, and prominent figures from these groups were named as ministers.

Luigi Di Maio, a leader of the 5-Star Movement, will remain foreign minister, while Giancarlo Giorgetti, a senior figure in the League party, will be industry minister. Andrea Orlando, from the centre-left Democratic Party, will be labour minister.

However, some key posts went to non-affiliated technocrats, including Daniele Franco, director general of the Bank of Italy, who was named as economy minister and Roberto Cingolani, a physicist and IT expert, who was handed the new role of minister for green transition.

Draghi is widely credited with pulling the euro zone back from the brink of collapse in 2012, pledging to do “whatever it takes” to save the single European currency.

Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics

He has largely vanished from the public eye since his ECB term ended in October 2019, but his name emerged as a potential premier in recent weeks as political turmoil combined with the health and economic emergencies to form a perfect storm.

A Draghi government would reinforce Italy’s international standing at a time when it has the presidency of the G20. But taking the job would carry risks for him.

The last time a technocrat took charge was in 2011, when another economist, Mario Monti, was entrusted with helping Italy out of a debt crisis. Parliamentarians soon turned on him when they deemed that his economic medicine was too pungent.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com

You May Also Like

5 dead, including suspect, 3 wounded in shootings in Texas

Five people, including the suspected gunman, were dead, and three others were…

Chairs sold at T.J. Maxx and Marshalls are recalled after injuries are reported in 10 cases

Office chairs sold at U.S. discount retailers and home goods stores have been…

Massive Hacks Linked to Russia, China Exploited U.S. Internet Security Gap

U.S. lawmakers and security experts are voicing concern that foreign governments are…

Bill Ackman Makes His Case for Music

Hedge-fund billionaire William Ackman says music comes just under food and water…