If passed, the new law – known as the ‘spazzacorrotti’ in Italian – will ban people convicted of graft from working with the state.

5-Star campaigned against corruption during elections earlier this year and now forms part of the governing coalition with the far-right League party.

Deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio, the 5-Star leader, told reporters that the bill would save the country “billions” of euros, but did not specify how that figure had been calculated.

Justice minister Alfonso Bonafede, also a 5-Star member, said the bill was a “revolution in the fight against corruption” after the cabinet approved it yesterday. It will now go to parliament.

The Italian prime minister, Guiseppe Conte, added: “This is a first in a series of measures that should make the country competitive again.”

Under the draft bill, anyone convicted of corruption and sentenced to more than two years in prison will not be able to hold public office or seek a state contract again, Bonafede said.

Undercover agents will also be allowed to work on corruption investigations for the first time under the legislation.