Matteo Renzi laid out an ambitious reform agenda for his first 100 days in office as he sought to form Italy’s next coalition government, paving the way for him to be sworn in as the country’s youngest ever prime minister within a week.

In a sweeping declaration of intent, the 39-year-old leader of the centre-left Democratic party said yesterday that he planned to move ahead this month with proposed changes to the constitution and a new electoral law designed to make governments more stable and effective.

This would be followed by reforms to the labour market in March, the public administration in April and the tax system in May. Mr Renzi said the biggest emergency facing Italy, where youth unemployment is running at a record high of over 40 per cent, was jobs and a nationwide sense of “despair”.