ROME, April 14 (UPI) -- Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi laid out how he is preparing to keep his People of Freedom party in power after he leaves office in 2013.
Berlusconi, the subject of several trials involving bribery, tax fraud and paying for sex with an underage prostitute, said he wasn't likely to hold office once his term as prime minister ends, and is considering Italy's justice minister, Angelino Alfano, as his successor, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
"If I'm needed as the noble father for the elections, I'll do it. I could be the name at the top of the electoral lists for my party, but I don't want an operative role," Berlusconi said, adding that he would consult polls before making a final decision. His remark that Alfano could "replace me" positions Alfano as a potential candidate for prime minister and leader of the center-right party.
Meanwhile, Italy's lower house of Parliament Wednesday approved a bill that would speed up court cases, a move some say would halt some of Berlusconi's trials, EUobserver.com reported.
The legislation would put a three-year limit on most trials in which a defendant faces a maximum sentence of 10 years, and would limit appeal procedures to two years.
"Infinite trial lengths damage all citizens," Alfano said Wednesday in defense of the bill.
Opposition politicians said the real driver behind the law was to end several corruption trials against Berlusconi. Two cases -- one for bribery and one for tax fraud -- kicked off in 2006 would be affected by the law's statute of limitations, EUobserver.com said.
"The law on short trials is an amnesty in disguise, thought up to avoid having the prime minister face trial," said Piero Fassino, a member of the center-left Democratic Party.
