Italians set to vote on PR

ROME (Reuter) - The supreme court yesterday cleared the way for Italians to vote next year on changes to the electoral system that could deal a blow to the principle of proportional representation. The court said a rule banning any referendum a year before a general election had not been broken and the referendum could go ahead.

One referendum could reduce the number of political parties represented in parliament. The court had thrown the referendums into doubt, but it backed down after criticism that the judges were resorting to legal cavils to hinder a reform of the political system.