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Italy faces a deep political crisis after Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi broke with Gianfranco Fini, his estranged partner in the centre-right People of Freedom party.
A party censure motion passed late on Thursday declared that Fini, who has kept up a stream of criticism of the government over recent months, was in a position of "absolute political incompatibility" with the People of Freedom.
However Fini rebuffed calls to resign as speaker of the lower house of parliament.
He said his allies in parliament would vote with the government if it stuck to its electoral programme but would "not hesitate to fight proposals that are unfair or damaging to the wider interest".
What happens next is unclear as there are few institutional guidelines. Here are some potential scenarios:
There are 630 seats in the lower house, meaning a majority of 316 is needed to pass laws. Prior to the split, Berlusconi could command a majority of up to 344 with his Northern League coalition partner and smaller parties, depending on how the minor groups which supported his government voted.
A new group of Fini supporters called "Future and Freedom for Italy" was registered in the lower house of parliament with 33 members, not including Fini himself.
That would be enough to deprive Berlusconi of a majority. Fini's supporters also say they have at least 10 votes in the Senate, which would cut Berlusconi's majority there to just two.
Berlusconi has said he has a majority even without Fini's supporters but even if this were true, life could become very difficult and the government would be constantly vulnerable to parliamentary guerrilla tactics by the opposition and the whims of small parties who support him on a case-by-case basis.
As house speaker, Fini also has considerable power to decide the timetabling of legislation.
Berlusconi could push for the dissolution of parliament and new elections, hoping to return to power with a solid majority and full control over his party.
Recent opinion polls show the government's approval ratings sinking but they also show rivals, including the fragmented centre-left opposition, suffering from a general climate of disillusion with politics and Berlusconi could win a vote.
However he may hold back from such a step because it would be up to President Giorgio Napolitano to decide whether to dissolve parliament and it is not certain he would agree.
Given that the problem is an internal party issue, Napolitano could decide there were no grounds for a new vote and could name an interim administration to manage business until elections due in 2013.
This was the option followed when former Finance Minister Lamberto Dini was named to head a government of technocrats in 1995 after a previous Berlusconi government collapsed.
Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti or respected business leader Luca di Montezemolo have both been named in press commentary as potential leaders of an interim government.
Financial markets have reacted positively to the 25 billion euro ($32.62 billion) austerity package which passed through parliament on Thursday and which is aimed at bringing Italy's public deficit back under European Union limits by 2012.
But if there is a prolonged period of political instability, that could change and attention could return to Italy's swollen public debt, equivalent to nearly 120 percent of gross domestic product and its long-term problem of low competitiveness.
The battle currently underway at carmaker Fiat to reform labour practices is an example of the kind of issue which could become more intractable without a clear government lead.
Also, if the prospect of early elections becomes more likely, Berlusconi may be tempted to loosen the government purse strings to boost support among voters. Reuters
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