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Zecchino: under pressure to revise reform decree. Credit: EUROPEAN PRESS AGENCY

Italian scientists are reacting nervously to the appointment of Ortensio Zecchino, a lawyer with no experience of scientific issues and a member of the right-wing PPI (Partito populare italiano), as minister for research and universities in the new coalition government.

Last week's ministerial reshuffle followed the collapse of the administration of former prime minister Romano Prodi after losing a no-confidence vote. Zecchino's predecessor was Luigi Berlinguer, a member of the left-wing PDS (Partito democratico della sinistra), who had had broad responsibilities for education. He remains in the cabinet, but his remit has been limited to schools.

The main concern of scientists is the effect the government's fall will have on the major restructuring that Italian research has been facing to increase efficiency (see Nature 386, 208; 1997).

The broad outline of the reforms was approved earlier this year. But pressures of other government business meant that decrees outlining rules for individual organizations — in particular the Italian space agency, the energy and environment agency, and the national research council (CNR) — had not been formally approved when the government collapsed.

One of Zecchino's first tasks will be to ensure that the decrees are approved and implemented. But he has the power to make changes to them before this happens, and many researchers are keen that he should introduce revisions to the decree covering the CNR.

A draft of the CNR decree had angered university professors as it eliminated their power over the research council's policymaking and grant distribution. Researchers were also worried that it concentrated that power in the hands of a small group of political appointees (see Nature 394, 712; 1998).

Lucio Bianco, president of the CNR and a member of the same party as Zecchino, is keen that the council should not lose its previous autonomy.