New Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti has won a second vote of confidence in parliament, securing his government's mandate to help resolve Italy's debt crisis.

The lower house approved the new government Friday by a vote of 556 to 61. The large margin followed a similar easy win in the Senate Thursday.

After receiving the final confidence vote from the lower house of parliament, Mr. Monti told reporters that his priority will be to address the eurozone problems. Mr. Monti said he already spoke with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel ahead of a meeting with them next Thursday in Strasbourg to discuss solutions.

The leaders of the eurozone's two biggest economies want Italy to adopt tough cost-cutting measures to rein in its huge public debt, which is undermining the common currency.

Monti said the new Italian Cabinet will have its first session Monday to start discussing the necessary economic reforms.

He also said Italy plans to play a “more active” role at the EU meetings in coming weeks.

Mr. Monti's unelected, technocratic government was formed after Italy's financial crisis forced his predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi, to resign.

Mr. Monti, an economics professor and former European Union commissioner, took office Wednesday and has vowed to impose stringent reforms to generate economic growth. He says Italians will have to make sacrifices to get the economy moving forward again.

Europe has already bailed out three countries — Greece, Ireland and Portugal — but the Italian economy is the third largest in the 17-nation eurozone and considered too big to rescue.

Mr. Monti has said his government will consider overhauling the entire tax system. Measures might include cutting taxes on employers and providing tax breaks for hiring women. He said he may bring back an unpopular property tax eliminated under Mr. Berlusconi, adding that shifting the tax burden from employers to consumers will encourage growth.

On Thursday, thousands of students across Italy marched against the new government. Demonstrators protesting budget cuts and a lack of jobs clashed with police in Rome, Milan, and other cities.