Tag: Snow

In the run-up to the Italian general election on March 4th, The Local is bringing you a daily round up of who's done what and why in the fast-moving world of Italian politics. Silvio Berlusconi dropped that bombshell in response to speculation that his Forza Italia party could abandon its alliance with the far right to form a "grand coalition", German-style, with the centre-left Democrats. But Berlusconi said today that grand coalitions, so beloved of Germany, are viewed in Italy with mistrust. Somewhat incredibly, just days from the election, Forza Italia still doesn't have a candidate for prime minister. The man Berlusconi has in mind is, as many have long suspected, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani, though "I have been asked by him to put forward his name only when he gives me the go-ahead". Italy's shadow government The Five Star Movement, on the other hand, just can't wait to announce who it would put in government. Roberto Maroni, the current president of Lombardy, has been with the League long enough to remember when it was the Northern League – and he doesn't like what it's become. In a column published today, Maroni blasted the party's current leader, Matteo Salvini, for losing sight of the League's original cause: greater autonomy for Italy's regions, beginning with those in north. From acid attack victim to candidate Even among so many memorable candidates, Lucia Annibali stands out. Until a few years ago, the 40-year-old lawyer had never considered running for office.