Berlusconi to break with government in budget vote

By Paolo Biondi ROME (Reuters) - Silvio Berlusconi's party will vote against the government in a confidence vote over the 2014 budget and will announce its withdrawal from the ruling coalition, a source in his Forza Italia party said on Tuesday. Prime Minister Enrico Letta is expected to survive without Berlusconi's support, but the vote has brought the clash between the two to a head a day before the Senate is expected to strip the four-time premier of his parliamentary seat after his August tax-fraud conviction. Berlusconi, however, prompted a split in his party when he tried and failed to bring down the government last month. The rift has left 30 center-right senators and 27 deputies supporting the government, which is enough to guarantee its survival at a vote scheduled to happen after 9 p.m. (2000 GMT).

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