1.
Silvio Berlusconi
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Silvio Berlusconi is an Italian media tycoon and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy in four governments. Berlusconi is the controlling shareholder of Mediaset and has owned the Italian football club A. C. Milan since 1986 and he is nicknamed Il Cavaliere for his Order of Merit for Labour, although he voluntarily resigned from this order in March 2014. In 2016, Forbes magazine ranked him as the 188th richest man in the world with a net worth of US$7.1 billion, in 2009, Forbes ranked him 12th in the List of The Worlds Most Powerful People due to his domination in Italian politics. He was the leader of the centre-right party Forza Italia from 1994 to 2009, since November 2013, he has led a revived Forza Italia. Berlusconi was the senior G8 leader from 2009 until 2011 and he holds the record of G8 Summit hosting. After serving nearly 19 years as member of the Chamber of Deputies, Italys lower house, on 1 August 2013, he was convicted of tax-fraud by the final appeal instance, Court of Cassation along with a public office ban for two years. As his age exceeded 70 years, he was exempted from direct imprisonment, because of being sentenced to a gross imprisonment for more than two years, a new Italian anticorruption law made the Senate expel and bar him from serving any legislative office for six years. Berlusconi has pledged to stay leader of Forza Italia throughout the period where he serves his imprisonment sentence, Berlusconi is famous for his populist political style and brash, overbearing personality. Berlusconi was born in Milan in 1936, where he was raised in a middle-class family and his father, Luigi Berlusconi, was a bank employee, and his mother, Rosa Bossi, a housewife. Silvio was the first of three children, he had a sister, Maria Francesca Antonietta Berlusconi, and has a brother, Paolo Berlusconi. After completing his school education at a Salesian college, he studied law at the Università Statale in Milan, graduating in 1961. Berlusconi was not required to serve the standard one-year stint in the Italian army which was compulsory at the time, in later life, he wrote AC Milans anthem with the Italian music producer and pop singer Tony Renis and Forza Italias anthem with the opera director Renato Serio. With the Neapolitan singer Mariano Apicella, he wrote two Neapolitan song albums, Meglio na canzone in 2003 and Lultimo amore in 2006, in 1965, he married Carla Elvira DallOglio, and they had two children, Maria Elvira, better known as Marina, and Pier Silvio. By 1980, Berlusconi had established a relationship with the actress Veronica Lario and he was divorced from DallOglio in 1985, and married Lario in 1990. By this time, Berlusconi was an entrepreneur, and his wedding was a notable social event. One of his best men was Bettino Craxi, a prime minister and leader of the Italian Socialist Party. In May 2009, Lario announced that she was to file for divorce, in addition to his five children, Berlusconi has ten grandchildren. Berlusconis business career began in construction, in the late 1960s, he built Milano Due,4,000 residential apartments east of Milan
2.
Gianfranco Fini
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He was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in Silvio Berlusconi’s government from 2001 to 2006. Fini was born on January 3,1952 in Bologna and his grandfather, a communist activist, died in 1970. His mother, Erminia Marani, was the daughter of Antonio Marani, who took part along with Italo Balbo in the march on Rome, which signaled the beginning of fascism in 1922. The name Gianfranco was chosen in remembrance of a cousin, who was killed when he was 20 years old by partisans soon after the liberation of Northern Italy on April 25,1945. In the 1980s he met Daniela Di Sotto, at that time married to Sergio Mariani, mrs. Di Sotto ended her marriage to stay with Fini. Mariani would try to kill soon after. In 1985 they had their daughter, Giuliana. Fini and Di Sotto married in a ceremony in Marino in 1988. Five months after his separation, his relationship with Elisabetta Tulliani, in December 2007, they had a daughter, Carolina. Their second daughter is called Martina, Gianfranco Fini attended Laura Bassi high school in Bologna. At this time, he involved with the Italian Social Movement. He then began his career in the Fronte della Gioventù. Three years later, he moved with his family to Rome, in August 1976 he served his military service in Savona, then in Rome at the Ministry of Defence. In 1977 he became secretary of the Fronte della Gioventù, chosen by Giorgio Almirante. Fini had placed fifth among seven candidates elected in the secretariat of the youth In the meantime. He also collaborated with the newspaper, Il Secolo dItalia. Fini was first elected to the Chamber of Deputies on June 26,1983, re-elected in 1987, in September he was nominated by Almirante to be his successor as the partys secretary. Because only in this way the MSI can have a future, Giorgio Almirante died in May 1988, and at the partys congress in Sorrento that year, Fini defeated the right wing of the party, headed by Pino Rauti, and was elected party secretary
3.
Pier Ferdinando Casini
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Pier Ferdinando Casini is an Italian politician. He was President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies from 2001 to 2006, Casini was born in Bologna and graduated with a degree in law. He was first elected in 1983 for the Christian Democracy party, in 1993, he was amongst the founders of the Christian Democratic Centre, which merged into Union of Christian and Centre Democrats in 2002. In 2001, after Silvio Berlusconis victory in the general election, in a speech to his UDC party, Casini said that not everyone is for sale, in a not so veiled statement about Berlusconis political tactics. Casini ran on a purely centrist platform, expanding the UDC into the Union of the Centre along with Savino Pezzottas White Rose, after 2008, he remained in opposition. At the 2009 Administrative elections, alliances were decided on a local bases, sometimes with PdL, after his divorce from Roberta Lubich, he started dating and eventually moved in with Azzurra Caltagirone, daughter of the famous Roman entrepreneur and publisher Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone. Later they would have a daughter and married on 27 October 2007, malaysia, Honorary Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Palazzo Montecitorio
4.
Umberto Bossi
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Umberto Bossi is an Italian politician, former leader of the Lega Nord, a party seeking autonomy or independence for Northern Italy or Padania. He is married to Manuela Marrone and has four sons, Umberto Bossi was born in 1941 in Cassano Magnago, in the province of Varese, Lombardy. He graduated from high school and later began studying medicine at the University of Pavia. While there, in February 1979 he met Bruno Salvadori, leader of the Valdostan Union, see also, Ideology of the Northern League Before becoming a politician, Bossi was a sympathiser of the Italian Communist Party in his early years. After the death of Salvadori in a car accident during the summer of 1980, after two years, the autonomist Lega Lombarda was born. In that period Bossi met his wife, Manuela Marrone. The Lega Lombarda would later seek alliances with similar movements in Veneto and Piedmont, forming the Northern League and he became the undisputed and unchallenged leader of the party, a position that he maintained until 2012, even after a serious stroke. He is currently the Leagues federal president, an honorary title devoid of real power, when the scandals of Tangentopoli were unveiled from 1992 on, Bossi rode the wave, presenting himself as the new man in politics, and set out to sweep away corruption and incompetence. Bossis sentence was upheld on appeal, while being Reforms minister in 2003 Bossi ordered the Navy to fire live rounds on boats holding illegal immigrants, stating After the second or third warning, bang. Bossi was critical of the European Union, and once described it as a nest of communist bankers, Bossi gave his last two sons unusual, politically charged names, Roberto Libertà and Eridano Sirio. The other son, Renzo, became the center of a controversy when, on May 2012, Renzo Bossi apparently graduated university after only one year of attendance, instead of three. This notwithstanding the fact that previously it took to him three years to pass his high school maturity exam and he alleged that he completed all the exams in Albanian, and had not visited Albania even once. Both Italian and Albanian prosecution offices investigated the case, Bossi began his institutional career in 1987 as the only senator of the Lega Nord, of which he was the leader. He was then given the nickname Senatur, senator in Lombard, Bossi agreed to return to an alliance with Berlusconi, which ultimately led to the 2001 electoral victory. He then served in Silvio Berlusconis second cabinet as Reforms Minister, Bossi later slowly returned to active politics. On 11 January 2005 Bossi appeared on the scene at the last house of the Lombard federalist politician Carlo Cattaneo at Lugano after 306 days from the accident. During that day, he met the Minister of Economy Giulio Tremonti with whom he constituted the political agreement called the Alliance of the North and he also met a representative of the Lega dei Ticinesi, a Swiss localist Movement led by the Luganese entrepreneur Giuliano Bignasca. During his speech Bossi spoke against the Europe of Masons, during the national elections of 2006 he signed a political agreement with Movimento per lAutonomia of the Sicilian politician Raffaele Lombardo
5.
The People of Freedom
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The People of Freedom was a centre-right political party in Italy. The federation was later transformed into a party during a party congress on 27–29 March 2009, the PdL formed Italys government from 2008 to 2011 in coalition with Lega Nord. Alfano functioned as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, in June 2013 Berlusconi announced Forza Italias revival and the PdLs transformation into a centre-right coalition. In the run-up to the 2006 general election there was talk among the component parties of the House of Freedoms coalition regarding a merger into a united party of moderates. Forza Italia, National Alliance and the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats all seemed interested in the project, soon after the election, however, UDC leader Pier Ferdinando Casini, who had been a reluctant coalition partner, started to distance from its historical allies. Another party of the coalition, Lega Nord, showed no interest in the idea, because of its character as a regionalist party. Shortly afterwards, from the board of a car in a crowded Piazza San Babila in Milan. The new course was called the running board revolution and this expression soon became very popular both among Berlusconis supporters and his adversaries. At the beginning, the fate of FI remained unclear, later, it was explained that the new partys core would consist of FI, the Circles of Freedom and other grassroots groups, and that some minor parties of the House of Freedoms would join too. Also UDC leader Casini criticized the idea from the start and seemed interested in a coalition with Fini. On 24 January 2008, the Prodi II Cabinet fell as a result of the political crisis, on the day after Berlusconi hinted that FI would probably contest its last election, and postponed the foundation of the new party until after the election. In an atmosphere of reconciliation with Fini, Berlusconi also stated that the new party could involve the participation of other parties, on 8 February, Berlusconi and Fini agreed to form a joint list under the banner of The People of Freedom, in alliance with LN. Italians in the World, Social Action and the Reformist Socialists, in the 2008 general election, the PdL won 37. 4% of the vote, getting elected 276 deputies and 146 senators and becoming the Italian largest party. The PdL was also the first party since Christian Democracy in the 1979 general election to get more than 35% of the popular vote, on 27–29 March 2009, the new party held its first congress in Rome and was officially founded. In the 2009 European Parliament election, the party won 35. 2% of the national vote, the PdL was also instrumental in the centre-right victories in Veneto and Piedmont, where two Presidents of LN, Luca Zaia and Roberto Cota respectively, were elected. Between 2009 and 2010 Gianfranco Fini, former leader of the conservative AN and President of the Chamber of Deputies, in fact most Finiani were Southern conservatives who opposed Berlusconis firm alliance with LN, federal reform and Giulio Tremontis economic policy. Others, including Gianni Alemanno and Alfredo Mantovano, found common ground with the partys Christian democrats, on 15 April 2010 Bocchino launched an association named Generation Italy in order to better represent Finis views within the party. On 22 April 2010 the national council of the PdL convened in Rome for the first time in a year, the conflict between Fini and Berlusconi was covered live on television
6.
Forza Italia
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Forza Italia was a centre-right political party in Italy with liberal-conservative, Christian-democratic, liberal and populist tendencies, as well as a significant social-democratic minority. Its leader was Silvio Berlusconi, four times Prime Minister of Italy, the party was founded in December 1993 and won its first general election soon afterwards in March 1994. The partys organisation and ideology depended heavily on its leader and its appeal to voters was based on Berlusconis personality more than on its ideology or programme. Italy was shaken by a series of corruption known as Tangentopoli. This led to the disappearance of the five parties which governed Italy from 1947, DC, PSI, PSDI, PLI and PRI, the new partys campaigning was strongly dependent on Fininvests TV stations and PR resources. This earned Forza Italia labels like virtual, plastic or business-firm party, in her 2001 study of the party, political scientist Emanuela Poli described Forza Italia as a mere diversification of Fininvest in the political market. The case of Forza Italia was unprecedented as never before had a political party been launched by a business corporation. Only slowly it transformed into a mass-membership organisation and it took four years until the first party congress was held. In the 1994 European Parliament election held in June, Forza Italia was placed first nationally, with 30. 6% of the vote, electing 27 MEPs. The party did not join a group in the European Parliament, instead forming the new group Forza Europa. Forza Italias leader was replaced as Prime Minister by Lamberto Dini, no members of Forza Italia joined the new government and the party leader was relegated to opposition. Between 1996 and 1998, the party started to strengthen its organisation under Claudio Scajola, in December 1999, Forza Italia gained full membership in the European Peoples Party, of which Antonio Tajani, the party leader of Forza Italia in the European Parliament, became a Vice President. In the same year, the party scored well in the European Parliament election of 1999, the party regained power in the general election of 2001, gaining 29. In June 2001, after the success in May elections, Sivio Berlusconi was returned head of the Italian government. Again all key ministerial posts were given to Forza Italia members, Interior, Defence, Dinance, Industry, in 2004 European elections, Forza Italia was second place nationally, receiving 20. 1% of the vote and returning 16 MEPs. In national office, the popularity kept declining steadily year after year. After this disappointing performance the cabinet was reshuffled, due to the insistence of the Union of Christian and Centre Democratss leaders. In the 2006 general election the party was present with a different logo
7.
National Alliance (Italy)
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National Alliance was a conservative political party in Italy. It was the successor of the post-fascist Italian Social Movement that distanced itself from its former ideology on its convention in Fiuggi, the ANs official newspaper was Secolo dItalia. Former MSI members were still the bulk of the new party. The name was suggested by an article on the Italian newspaper Il Tempo written in 1992 by Domenico Fisichella, starting in the 1990s, the MSI gradually transformed into a mainstream right-wing party, culminating in its 1995 dissolution into AN. The party was part of all three House of Freedoms coalition governments led by Silvio Berlusconi, Gianfranco Fini was notably nominated Deputy Prime Minister after the 2001 general election and was Foreign Minister from November 2004 to May 2006. In occasion of the 2006 general election, AN ran within the House of Freedoms, the centre-right lost by 24,000 votes in favour of the centre-left coalition The Union. Individually AN received nearly 5 million votes, amounting to 12. 3%, in July 2007 a group of splinters led by Francesco Storace formed The Right, which was officially founded on 10 November. Seven MPs of AN, including Teodoro Buontempo and Daniela Santanchè, in November 2007 Silvio Berlusconi announced that Forza Italia would have soon merged or transformed into The People of Freedom party. In an atmosphere of reconciliation with Gianfranco Fini, Berlusconi also stated that the new party could see the participation of other parties. Finally, on 8 February, Berlusconi and Fini agreed to form a joint list under the banner of the The People of Freedom, after the victory of the PdL in the 2008 general election, AN was merged into the PdL in early 2009. Distinguishing itself from the MSI, the party distanced itself from Benito Mussolini and Fascism and that is why the party was strong in Rome and Lazio, where most civil servants live. Moreover, AN presented itself as a party promoting national cohesion, national identity, some of these positions were not shared by many members of the party, most of whom staunchly opposed stem cell research and artificial insemination. Social Right, led by Gianni Alemanno, advocated a more social approach to policy and was considered at the right of the party. It had close ties with the General Labour Union, d-Destra, led by Francesco Storace, was the most conservative component of the party, proud of the MSIs tradition and in open opposition to Fini. Formed as a split from the Social Right, in July 2007 the group finally left AN, Christian Reformists was a minor Christian democratic faction. This was not a faction but an official organism within the party and expressed the position of the party on ethical. Some members of the Council, such as Pedrizzi and Mantovano were described as members of an unofficial Catholic Right faction. The party had roughly 10–15% support across Italy, having its stongholds in Central and Southern Italy, scoring badly in Lombardy and Sicily, from that moment the party suffered an electoral decline, but remained the third force of Italian politics
8.
Political spectrum
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A political spectrum is a system of classifying different political positions upon one or more geometric axes that symbolize independent political dimensions. Most long-standing spectra include a wing and left wing, which originally referred to seating arrangements in the French parliament after the Revolution. According to the simplest left–right axis, communism and socialism are usually regarded internationally as being on the left, liberalism can mean different things in different contexts, sometimes on the left, sometimes on the right. Those with an intermediate outlook are classified as centrists or moderates, politics that rejects the conventional left–right spectrum is known as syncretic politics. Political scientists have noted that a single left–right axis is insufficient for describing the existing variation in political beliefs. As seen from the Speakers seat at the front of the Assembly, the aristocracy sat on the right, originally, the defining point on the ideological spectrum was the Ancien Régime. The Right thus implied support for aristocratic or royal interests, and the church, while The Left implied support for republicanism, secularism, and civil liberties. Because the political franchise at the start of the revolution was relatively narrow, the original Left represented mainly the interests of the bourgeoisie and their political interests in the French Revolution lay with opposition to the aristocracy, and so they found themselves allied with the early capitalists. However, this did not mean that their interests lay with the laissez-faire policies of those representing them politically. As capitalist economies developed, the aristocracy became less relevant and were replaced by capitalist representatives. This evolution has often pulled parliamentary politicians away from laissez-faire economic policies, for almost a century, social scientists have considered the problem of how best to describe political variation. In 1950, Leonard W. Submitting the results to factor analysis and this system was derived empirically, rather than devising a political model on purely theoretical grounds and testing it, Fergusons research was exploratory. As a result of method, care must be taken in the interpretation of Fergusons three factors, as factor analysis will output an abstract factor whether an objectively real factor exists or not. Although replication of the Nationalism factor was inconsistent, the finding of Religionism and Humanitarianism had a number of replications by Ferguson, shortly afterward, Hans Eysenck began researching political attitudes in Great Britain. He believed that there was something similar about the National Socialists on the one hand. Submitting this value questionnaire to the process of factor analysis used by Ferguson. Such analysis produces a factor whether or not it corresponds to a real-world phenomenon, Eysencks dimensions of R and T were found by factor analyses of values in Germany and Sweden, France, and Japan. According to Eysenck, members of both ideologies were tough-minded, in this context, Eysenck carried out studies on nazism and communist groups, claiming to find members of both groups to be more dominant and more aggressive than control groups
9.
Politics of Italy
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Politics of Italy is conducted through a constitutional republic with a multi-party system. The executive power is exercised collectively by the Council of Ministers, legislative power is vested in the two houses of parliament primarily, and secondarily on the Council of Ministers, which can introduce bills and holds the majority in the parliament. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislative branches and it is headed by the High Council of the Judiciary. The president is the head of state, though his position is separate from all branches, the current President is Sergio Mattarella and the current Prime Minister of Italy is Paolo Gentiloni. Article 1 of the Italian Constitution states Italy is a democratic Republic founded on labour, sovereignty belongs to the people and is exercised by the people in the forms and within the limits of the Constitution. By stating that Italy is a republic, the article solemnly declares the results of the constitutional referendum which took place on 2 June 1946. The State is not a property of the ruling monarch. The people who are called to administer the republic are not owners, but servants, and the governed are not subjects. And the sovereignty, that is the power to make choices that involve the community, belongs to the people, in accordance with the concept of a democracy, from the Greek demos. This power, however, is not to be exercised arbitrarily, as the head of state, the President of the Republic represents the unity of the nation and has many of the duties previously given to the king of Italy. The President serves as a point of connection between the three branches, he is elected by the lawmakers, he appoints the executive, and is the president of the judiciary, the president is also commander-in-chief in the time of war. These delegates are elected by their respective Regional Councils so as to guarantee representation to minorities, the election needs a wide majority that is progressively reduced from two-thirds to one-half plus one of the votes after the third ballot. The only Presidents ever to be elected on the first ballot are Francesco Cossiga, mr. Ciampi was replaced by Giorgio Napolitano, who was elected on 10 May 2006. While it is not forbidden by law, no president had ever served two terms, until 20 April 2013, when president Giorgio Napolitano was re-elected. According to the Constitution, any citizen that is fifty on the day of the election, the President cannot hold office in any other branch of power, and the offices salary and privileges are established by law. The President also presides over the High Council of the Judiciary, usually, the President tries to stay out of the political debate, and to be an institutional guarantee for all those involved in the political process. The president can also reject openly anti-constitutional acts as the guardian of the Constitution of Italy, with article 48 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to vote, the people exercise their power through their elected representatives in the Parliament. The Italian legislative branch has rights to declare war with a majority vote, the Parliament has a bicameral system, and consists of the Chamber of deputies and the Senate, elected every five years
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Elections in Italy
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The President of the Republic is elected for a seven-year term by the two houses of Parliament in joint session. Italy has historically had many parties, both national and regional, with different party systems. The most recent Italian general election was held on 24 and 25 February 2013, on 24 April 2013, Napolitano, gave the task to form a new government to the Deputy-Secretary of the Democratic Party, Enrico Letta. On 28 April he sworn in as Prime Minister, the voter turnout in 2013 explains how the people of Italy really feel about the instability of their government. This graph shows the results of elections held in Italy from 1946 to today, with the percentages of consensus gathered by the various parties, passing your mouse over the different colored sections will display the name of the grouping and the percentage in the corresponding election. Clicking on a region will direct you to the article on the party or election selected, the constitution of Italy provides for two kinds of binding referendums. A legislative referendum can be called in order to abrogate a law totally or partially and this kind of referendum is valid only if at least a majority of electors goes to the polling station. It is forbidden to call a referendum regarding financial laws or laws relating to pardons or the ratification of international treaties, a constitutional referendum is valid no matter how many electors go to the polling station. Any citizen entitled to vote in an election to the Chamber of Deputies may participate in a referendum
11.
Italian language
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By most measures, Italian, together with Sardinian, is the closest to Latin of the Romance languages. Italian is a language in Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City. Italian is spoken by minorities in places such as France, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Crimea and Tunisia and by large expatriate communities in the Americas. Many speakers are native bilinguals of both standardized Italian and other regional languages, Italian is the fourth most studied language in the world. Italian is a major European language, being one of the languages of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. It is the third most widely spoken first language in the European Union with 65 million native speakers, including Italian speakers in non-EU European countries and on other continents, the total number of speakers is around 85 million. Italian is the working language of the Holy See, serving as the lingua franca in the Roman Catholic hierarchy as well as the official language of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Italian is known as the language of music because of its use in musical terminology and its influence is also widespread in the arts and in the luxury goods market. Italian has been reported as the fourth or fifth most frequently taught foreign language in the world, Italian was adopted by the state after the Unification of Italy, having previously been a literary language based on Tuscan as spoken mostly by the upper class of Florentine society. Its development was influenced by other Italian languages and to some minor extent. Its vowels are the second-closest to Latin after Sardinian, unlike most other Romance languages, Italian retains Latins contrast between short and long consonants. As in most Romance languages, stress is distinctive, however, Italian as a language used in Italy and some surrounding regions has a longer history. What would come to be thought of as Italian was first formalized in the early 14th century through the works of Tuscan writer Dante Alighieri, written in his native Florentine. Dante is still credited with standardizing the Italian language, and thus the dialect of Florence became the basis for what would become the language of Italy. Italian was also one of the recognised languages in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Italy has always had a dialect for each city, because the cities. Those dialects now have considerable variety, as Tuscan-derived Italian came to be used throughout Italy, features of local speech were naturally adopted, producing various versions of Regional Italian. Even in the case of Northern Italian languages, however, scholars are not to overstate the effects of outsiders on the natural indigenous developments of the languages
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Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
13.
Pole of Freedoms
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The Pole of Freedoms was a centre-right political and electoral alliance in Italy, launched at the 1994 general election by Silvio Berlusconi. The alliance was composed primarily of Forza Italia and the Lega Nord, but also included Christian Democratic Centre and the Union of the Centre. The Pole of Freedoms was present only in Northern Italy, while the Pole of Good Government, composed of Forza Italia, the National Alliance appeared on ballots individually in the North. However, the term Pole of Freedoms had no official character, after the fall of the Berlusconi I Cabinet because of disagreements with the Lega Nord, the alliance ended. It was initially composed of the political parties
14.
Italian general election, 1994
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A snap national general election was held in Italy on March 27,1994 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Silvio Berlusconis centre-right alliance won a majority in the Chamber. The Italian Peoples Party, the renamed Christian Democrats, which had dominated Italian politics for almost half a century, was decimated. A new electoral system was introduced in elections, after the abolition of the proportional representation established after the end of World War II. On 26 January 1994, the media magnate Silvio Berlusconi announced his decision to enter politics, presenting his own party, Forza Italia. During his years of political career Berlusconi has repeatedly stated that the Mani Pulite investigations were led by communist prosecutors who wanted to establish a government in Italy. In a shrewd move, he did not ally with the latter in the North because the League disliked them. As a result, Forza Italia was allied with two parties that were not allied with each other, Berlusconi launched a massive campaign of electoral advertisements on his three TV networks. He subsequently won the elections, with Forza Italia garnering 21% of the popular vote, one of the most significant promises that he made in order to secure victory was that his government would create one million more jobs. Since the alliance was sure of victory, based his campaign accusing the communicative power of Silvio Berlusconi, on election day, Berlusconis coalition won a decisive victory over Occhettos one, becoming the first center-right coalition to win general election since the Second World War. In the popular vote, Berlusconis coalition outpolled the Alliance of Progressive by over 5.1 million votes, Alliance of Progressive reconfirmed itself in the ex-communist regions in the Center and in the South. Instead of it had done in the Chamber, Pole of Freedoms failed in winning a majority in the Senate. Although, the Berlusconi I Cabinet obtained a vote of confidence also in the Senate, thanks to the defection of four PPI senators, who decided not to participate in the vote. The vote of the Senators for life was not decisive, as three voted in favour of the government, three were absent and five voted against, the Senate finally gave Berlusconi 159 votes in favour and 153 against. Regions where coalitions margin of victory < 5% for the Chamber Molise,1. 5% Campania,2. 1% Lazio,2. 5% Liguria,3. 6% Carter, Italy, The Demise of Post-War Partyocracy. Political Parties and the Collapse of the Old Orders, state University of New York Press. Milano a Roma, guida allItalia elettorale del 1994, electoral reform and political change in Italy, 1991–1994. The New Italian Republic, From the Fall of the Berlin Wall to Berlusconi
15.
Italian general election, 1996
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A snap national general election was held in Italy on 21 April 1996 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. Romano Prodi, leader of the centre-left coalition The Olive Tree, won the election, narrowly defeating Silvio Berlusconi, Lega Nord also resented the fact that many of its MPs had switched to Forza Italia, allegedly lured by promises of more prestigious portfolios. Berlusconi remained as prime minister for a little over a month until his replacement by a technocratic government headed by Lamberto Dini. Dini had been a key minister in the Berlusconi cabinet, in the end, however, Dini was only supported by most opposition parties but not by Forza Italia and Lega Nord. Favourably to this proposal sided both, in a TV debate on 19 January 1996, Silvio Berlusconi and Democratic Party of the Left leader Massimo DAlema. Although there were problems on this theme in both coalition, in fact Gianfranco Fini and Romano Prodi wanted a snap election, not sure that the reforms would be helpful for the country. On 16 February 1996, an election was called. On 19 February 1996, the outgoing Prime Minister Lamberto Dini announced that he would run in the election with a new party allied with The Olive Tree rather than Berlusconis Pole of Freedoms, shortly after Berlusconi claimed that Dini copied our electoral programme. In the Senate The Olive Tree obtained the majority, but in the Chamber it required the support of Communist Refoundation Party. Minister of Internal Affairs of Italy,1996 Election Results, Chamber of Deputies Minister of Internal Affairs of Italy,1996 Election Results, Senate of the Republic
16.
The Olive Tree (Italy)
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The Olive Tree was a denomination used for several successive centre-left political and electoral alliances of Italian political parties from 1995 to 2007. On 21 April 1996, The Olive Tree won 1996 general election in alliance with the Communist Refoundation Party, on 9 October 1998, the Prodi I Cabinet fell when PRC left the alliance. Since 21 October 1998 The Olive Tree was the core of the led by Massimo DAlema. When DAlema became Prime Minister, it was the first time ever in Italy, on 13 May 2001, led by Francesco Rutelli, who ran in ticket with Piero Fassino, the coalition lost the general elections against Silvio Berlusconi and his House of Freedoms centre-right coalition. On 10 February 2005, the name and logo of that larger electoral coalition was presented and it comprised the Federation of The Olive Tree, the Communist Refoundation Party, the Party of Italian Communists, Italy of Values, the Federation of the Greens and other minor parties. The Democrats of the Left, Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, also the Italian Democratic Socialist Party and The Italian Socialists had candidates in the list. DS and DL were heavily involved in the foundation of a new unitary party, the Democratic Party. This party was founded on 14 October 2007 and Walter Veltroni was elected party leader by voters in an open primary, Italy Between Europeanization and Domestic Politics. Centre-left coalition Official website of the Democratic Party Italys Olive Tree, article by The Nation
17.
Romano Prodi
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Romano Prodi, OMRI is an Italian former politician and economist. He twice served as the Prime Minister of Italy, from 17 May 1996 to 21 October 1998 and he was also the tenth President of the European Commission from 1999 to 2004. He is nicknamed Il Professore due to his occupation as professor of Economics at the University of Bologna, following the victory of his coalition The Union over the House of Freedoms led by Silvio Berlusconi in the April 2006 Italian elections, Prodi took power again. Up to this time, he has been the only one candidate of Italian Centre-left who won elections. On 14 October 2007, Prodi became the first President of the Democratic Party upon foundation of the party, on 12 September 2008, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon selected Prodi as president of the African Union-UN peacekeeping panel. He is currently serving as the UN Special Envoy for the Sahel, Prodi was born in Scandiano, in the province of Reggio Emilia. He is the eighth of nine children of Mario Prodi, an originally from a peasant family, and Enrica. He has two sisters and six brothers, five of them being like him university professors, Prodi married Flavia Franzoni in 1969. He was married by Camillo Ruini, now a well-known cardinal and they have two sons, Giorgio and Antonio. He and his family live in Bologna. He then carried out postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics, Prodi has also been a visiting professor at Harvard University and a researcher at the Stanford Research Institute. His research covers mainly competition regulations and the development of small and he is also interested in relations between states and markets, and the dynamics of the different capitalistic models. Prodi has received almost 20 honorary degrees from institutions in Italy, and from the rest of Europe, North America, Asia, in 1982–1989 Prodi was President of the influential state-owned industrial holding company Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale. After leaving his position, Prodi ran the Bologna based consulting company Analisi e Studi Economici, between 1990 and 1993 the company earned £1.4 million, most of which was paid by the investment bank Goldman Sachs. In 1993-1994 Prodi was again President of the IRI, where he oversaw extensive privatization of public assets, Prodis former employer Goldman Sachs was involved in both of the deals. In February 2007 the Italian Treasury Police raided the Milan office of Goldman Sachs, the case was however shut down within weeks by superiors, while Geremia was exiled to Sardinia. Prodis political career began as a left-of-centre reformist Christian Democrat and a disciple of Beniamino Andreatta, during the mid-1970s he was appointed Minister of Industry. During Giulio Andreottis government in 1978, he served as a Technical Minister, through the 1980s, Prodi claimed he had been given this tip-off by the founders of the Christian Democracy party, contacted from beyond the grave via a séance and a Ouija board
18.
Italian general election, 2001
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A national general election was held in Italy on 13 May 2001 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. The 14th Parliament of the Italian republic was chosen, the method used for the Senate was even more complicated, 75% of seats by uninominal method, and 25% by a special proportional method that assigned the remaining seats to minority parties. Formally, these were examples of additional member systems, in this solemn agreement, Berlusconi claimed his commitment on improving several aspects of the Italian economy and life. Berlusconi undertook to refrain from putting himself up for re-election in 2006 if he failed to honour at least four of five promises. In 2001 the proportional list exhausted before all the deputies - which the party was entitled to - were declared elected
19.
Francesco Cossiga
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Francesco Cossiga, OMRI was an Italian politician of the Christian Democracy party. He was the 42nd Prime Minister of Italy from 1979 to 1980 and he was also a professor of constitutional law at the University of Sassari. Cossiga was born in Sassari in northern Sardinia and he started his political career during World War II. His name is now pronounced, but it was originally pronounced, with the stress on the first syllable, meaning Corsica in Sardinian. He was the cousin of Enrico Berlinguer and he was a minister several times for the Democrazia Cristiana party, notably during his stay at Viminale where he re-structured the Italian police, civil protection and secret services. He was in office at the time of the kidnapping and murder of Aldo Moro by Red Brigades, and resigned as Minister of the Interior when Moro was found dead in 1978. According to Italian journalist Enrico Deaglio, Cossiga, to justify his lack of action, accused the leaders of CGIL, Cossiga was also minister of internal affairs when Fascist terrorists bombed Bologna station in 1980. Francesco Cossiga first assumed the explosion to have been caused by an accident, Cossiga was elected President of the Italian Senate 12 July 1983, a position he held until 24 June 1985, when he became the President of Italy. Following his resignation as president of the Senate in 1985, Cossiga was elected as President of Italy and this was the first time an Italian presidential candidate had won on the first ballot. It was not until his last two years as President that Cossiga began to some unusual opinions regarding the Italian political system. He opined that the Italian parties, especially the DC and Italian Communist Party, had to take account the deep changes brought about by the fall of the Berlin Wall. Cossiga suffered from bipolar disorder and depression in the last years of his life, tension developed between Cossiga and Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti. Cossiga acknowledged his involvement in the establishment of the organization, the Democratic Party of the Left started the procedure of impeachment. Although he threatened to prevent the impeachment procedure by dissolving Parliament, Cossiga resigned two months before the end of his term, on 25 April 1992. In February 1998, Cossiga created the Unione Democratica per la Repubblica, the UDR was a crucial component of the majority that supported the DAlema government in October 1998, after the fall of the Prodi government which lost a vote of confidence. Cossiga declared that his support for DAlema was intended to end the exclusion of the former Communist Party leaders from the premiership in Italy. In 1999 UDR was dissolved and Cossiga returned to his activities as a senator, on 27 November 2006, he resigned from his position as a lifetime senator. His resignation was, however, rejected on 31 January 2007 by a vote of the Senate, Cossiga died on 17 August 2010 from respiratory problems
20.
Berlusconi II Cabinet
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The Berlusconi II Cabinet was the 57th cabinet of the Italian Republic, and the first cabinet of the XIV Legislature. It took office following the 2001 elections, and held office from 11 June 2001 until 23 April 2005 and it held office for the longest period in the history of the Republic, and for the second longest period in the history of unified Italy since 1861. During its long tenure, its composition changed significantly, berlusconis success in the May 2001 general election led to him becoming Prime Minister once more, with the coalition receiving 45. 4% of the vote for the Chamber of Deputies and 42. 5% for the Senate. In this solemn agreement, Berlusconi claimed his commitment on improving aspects of the Italian economy. Berlusconi undertook to refrain from putting himself up for re-election in 2006 if he failed to honour at least four of five promises. Opposition parties claim Berlusconi was not able to achieve the goals he promised in his Contratto con gli Italiani, Berlusconi himself has consistently asserted that he achieved all the goals of the agreement, and said his Government provided un miracolo continuo that made all earlier governments pale. He attributed the failure to recognize these achievements to a campaign of mystification and vilification in the printed media. Luca Ricolfi, an independent analyst, held that Berlusconi had managed to only one promise out of five. The other four promises were not, in Luca Ricolfi’s view, in particular, the undertakings on the tax simplification and the reduction of crime. House of Freedoms did not do as well in the 2003 local elections as it did in the 2001 national elections, in common with many other European governing groups, in the 2004 elections of the European Parliament, gaining 43. 37% support. Forza Italias support was reduced from 29. 5% to 21. 0%. As an outcome of these results the other parties, whose electoral results were more satisfactory, asked Berlusconi. In the 2005 regional elections, the gubernatorial candidates won in 12 out of 14 regions where control of local governments. Berlusconis coalition kept only two of the bodies up for re-election. Three parties, Union of Christian and Centre Democrats, National Alliance and Socialist Party - New PSI, the Italian Premier, after some hesitation, then presented to the President of the Republic a request for the dissolution of his government on 20 April 2005. The Governance of the Centre-Right Coalition, Italy Between Europeanization and Domestic Politics. Italian Government - Berlusconi II Cabinet
21.
Lombardy
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Lombardy is one of the twenty administrative regions of Italy, in the northwest of the country, with an area of 23,844 square kilometres. Milan, Lombardys capital, is the second-largest city and the largest metropolitan area in Italy, the word Lombardy comes from Lombard, which in turn is derived from Late Latin Longobardus, Langobardus, derived from the Proto-Germanic elements *langaz + *bardaz, equivalent to long beard. Some sources derive the second element instead from Proto-Germanic *bardǭ, *barduz, Lombardy referred during the early Middle Ages to the entire territory of Italy ruled by the Lombards, a Germanic tribe who conquered much of the Italian peninsula beginning in the 6th century. During the late Middle Ages, the term shifted meaning and was used to identify the whole of Northern Italy, with a surface of 23,861 km2, Lombardy is the 4th largest region of Italy. It is bordered by Switzerland and by the Italian regions of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol and Veneto, Emilia-Romagna, three distinct natural zones can be fairly easily distinguished in the Lombardy region, mountains, hills and plains – the latter being divided in Alta and Bassa. Inconsistent with the three distinctions above made is the subregion of Oltrepò Pavese, formed by the Apennine foothills beyond the Po River. The mighty Po river marks the border of the region for a length of about 210 km. In its progress it receives the waters of the Ticino River, the other streams which contribute to the great river are, the Olona, the Lambro, the Adda, the Oglio and the Mincio. The numerous lakes of Lombardy, all of glacial origin, lie in the northern highlands, from west to east these are Lake Maggiore, Lake Lugano, Lake Como, Lake Iseo, Lake Idro, then Lake Garda, the largest in Italy. A minor mountainous area, the Oltrepò Pavese, lies south of the Po, in the plains, intensively cultivated for centuries, little of the original environment remains. The most commons trees are elm, alder, sycamore, poplar, willow, in the area of the foothills lakes, however, grow olive trees, cypresses and larches, as well as varieties of subtropical flora such as magnolias, azaleas, acacias. Numerous species of flora in the Prealpine area include some kinds of saxifrage, the Lombard garlic, groundsels bellflowers. The highlands are characterized by the vegetation of the whole range of the Italian Alps. At a lower levels oak woods or broadleafed trees grow, on the slopes beech trees grow at the lowest limits. Shrubs such as rhododendron, dwarf pine and juniper are native to the summital zone, Lombardy has a wide array of climates, due to local variances in elevation, proximity to inland water basins, and large metropolitan areas. In addition, there is a seasonal temperature variation. A peculiarity of the climate is the thick fog that covers the plains between October and February. In the Alpine foothills, characterised by an Oceanic climate, numerous lakes exercise a mitigating influence, in the hills and mountains, the climate is humid continental
22.
Sicily
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Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous Region of Italy, along with surrounding minor islands, Sicily is located in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula, from which it is separated by the narrow Strait of Messina. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, the island has a typical Mediterranean climate. The earliest archaeological evidence of activity on the island dates from as early as 12,000 BC. It became part of Italy in 1860 following the Expedition of the Thousand, a revolt led by Giuseppe Garibaldi during the Italian unification, Sicily was given special status as an autonomous region after the Italian constitutional referendum of 1946. Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially regard to the arts, music, literature, cuisine. It is also home to important archaeological and ancient sites, such as the Necropolis of Pantalica, the Valley of the Temples, Sicily has a roughly triangular shape, earning it the name Trinacria. To the east, it is separated from the Italian mainland by the Strait of Messina, about 3 km wide in the north, and about 16 km wide in the southern part. The northern and southern coasts are each about 280 km long measured as a line, while the eastern coast measures around 180 km. The total area of the island is 25,711 km2, the terrain of inland Sicily is mostly hilly and is intensively cultivated wherever possible. Along the northern coast, the ranges of Madonie,2,000 m, Nebrodi,1,800 m. The cone of Mount Etna dominates the eastern coast, in the southeast lie the lower Hyblaean Mountains,1,000 m. The mines of the Enna and Caltanissetta districts were part of a leading sulphur-producing area throughout the 19th century, Sicily and its surrounding small islands have some highly active volcanoes. Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and still casts black ash over the island with its ever-present eruptions and it currently stands 3,329 metres high, though this varies with summit eruptions, the mountain is 21 m lower now than it was in 1981. It is the highest mountain in Italy south of the Alps, Etna covers an area of 1,190 km2 with a basal circumference of 140 km. This makes it by far the largest of the three volcanoes in Italy, being about two and a half times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. In Greek Mythology, the deadly monster Typhon was trapped under the mountain by Zeus, Mount Etna is widely regarded as a cultural symbol and icon of Sicily. The Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the northeast of mainland Sicily form a volcanic complex, the three volcanoes of Vulcano, Vulcanello and Lipari are also currently active, although the latter is usually dormant
23.
Giulio Tremonti
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Giulio Tremonti is an Italian politician. He served in the government of Italy as Minister of Economy and Finances under Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from 1994 to 1995, from 2001 to 2004, from 2005 to 2006, and from 2008 to 2011. Tremonti is a professor of law at the University of Pavia, Italy. His particular fields of interest are fiscal and tributary law, as well as fiscal policies, although a member of Forza Italia, on many issues he is closer to the League. He first ran for the Italian Parliament in 1987 with the Italian Socialist Party, Tremonti again served as finances minister from 2001 to 2004 when Berlusconi came back to power. He was compelled to resign after internal disputes about the situation of the country within the House of Freedoms. In late 2005 he was reappointed to the same position for a third time after his substitute Domenico Siniscalco resigned until the end of the Berlusconi III Cabinet. At the 2008 general elections Berlusconi came back to power with a majority in the parliament and assigned Tremonti the Economics. At the end of 2011, following some rumors Tremonti would close to leave Pdl, during his time in office, Tremonti made the first and biggest across the board Income tax cuts in Italy by introducing a No-Tax-Area and reducing the top marginal tax rate. He also made a significant reduction in the Corporate tax rate and has abolished taxes on reinvested profits and he has also completely abolished all Donation taxes, Estate/Inheritance taxes and more importantly Property taxes on Housing/Real Estate at the national level. Nevertheless, after these measures, the OECD stated in its latest report on Italy that tax rates are compared to other countries. He has been the promoter of the Global Legal Standards, as an author, during his life Tremonti has written mostly on taxation and international trade. He expressed how high taxes are a drag for growth and how fiscal federalism can create territorial taxation competition between regions that can reduce the burden on families and workers and he has also been a critic of Chinas dumping trade policy that causes delocalization of jobs from Europe to Asia. Nevertheless, in 2009 he gave an important lecture at the Central Party School of the Communist Party of China and he is currently chairman of the Aspen Institute Italia and a frequent guest columnist on the Corriere della Sera
24.
Union of the Centre (2002)
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The Union of the Centre, whose complete name is Union of Christian and Centre Democrats, is a Christian democratic political party in Italy. Lorenzo Cesa is the current secretary, hence its leader. Pier Ferdinando Casini who, for years, was the most recognisable figure and de facto leader of the party, the UdC is a member of the European Peoples Party and the Centrist Democrat International, of which Casini was president from 2004 to 2015. The party was formed as Union of Christian and Centre Democrats in December 2002 upon the merger of the Christian Democratic Centre, the UDC was part of the Pole/House of Freedoms from its establishment through 2008. Later it has been affiliated neither to the centre-right nor the centre-left at the national level, in the 2013 general election the UdC was part of With Monti for Italy, the coalition formed around Mario Montis Civic Choice. More recently the party, which sits in the Renzi Cabinet, has sided with the Angelino Alfanos New Centre-Right within the so-called Popular Area, the UdC left the alliance, while suffering an internal split, in December 2016. The party was founded on 6 December 2002 by the merger of three parties, the Christian Democratic Centre, the United Christian Democrats and European Democracy, at the 2001 Italian general election the three precursors of the UDC had scored 5. 6%. Follini and Buttiglione became respectively national secretary and president of the new party, at the 2004 European Parliament election the UDC won 5. 9% of the vote and five MEPs. The partys growth was reflected by Follinis entry in Berlusconis second cabinet as Deputy Prime Minister with the goal of strengthening the government while diminishing the influence of Lega Nord. At the 2005 regional elections the UDC and the House of Freedoms faced a defeat by winning only 2 regions out of 14. Follini asked Silvio Berlusconi to resign and form a new government, in the new executive Buttiglione became minister of Culture, while Follini step down from his previous post in order to concentrate on the party. On 15 October 2005 Follini suddenly resigned from his position as party secretary and was replaced on 27 October by Lorenzo Cesa, an ally of Casini. The party took part to the 2006 general election with a new logo, characterised by the inclusion of the name of Casini, despite the defeat of the House of Freedoms, the UDC improved its electoral performance by gaining 6. 8% of the vote. After the departure of Follini, however, Casini became highly critical of Berlusconi too and they were soon followed by many others. Despite having lost many votes to the PdL, the UDC was able to woo some new voters from the centre-left and gained 5. 6% of the vote,36 deputies and three senators. Soon after the election, Mario Baccini, one of the leaders of The Rose, after the election, Casini relaunched his plan for a new centrist party, as an alternative to both the PdL and the PD. In the 2009 European Parliament election the UdC won 6. 5% of the vote and five of its candidates were elected to the European Parliament, including De Mita and Magdi Allam. In December 2010 the UdC was a member of the New Pole for Italy, along with Future and Freedom
25.
European Parliament election, 2004 (Italy)
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Elections to the European Parliament were held in Italy on 12 and 13 June 2004. The common list of The Olive Tree, comprising mainly the Democrats of the Left and Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy became the largest list, with an important psychological effect. However, expectations for this list were originally larger, and Massimo DAlema had proclaimed that If the unity list reaches 33%. While the Olive Trees performance was not as phenomenal as it had hoped, two levels were used, a national level to divide seats between parties, and a constituency level to distribute them between candidates. Italian regions were united in 5 constituencies, each electing a group of deputies, at national level, seats were divided between party lists using the largest remainder method with Hare quota. All seats gained by each party were automatically distributed to their local open lists, seats are allocated to party lists on a national basis using an electoral quota, with the residue given to the lists with the largest excess over whole quotas. An electoral quota is calculated for each list and used to allocate seats to each list in each of the five electoral regions. European Election News by European Election Law Association European Parliament election,2009
26.
Regions of Italy
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The regions of Italy are the first-level administrative divisions of Italy, constituting its second NUTS administrative level. There are 20 regions, of five are constitutionally given a broader amount of autonomy granted by special statutes. Each region, except for the Aosta Valley, is divided into provinces, regions are autonomous entities with powers defined in the Constitution. As the administrative districts of the state during the Kingdom of Italy. The original draft list comprised the Salento region, friuli and Venezia Giulia were separate regions, and Basilicata was named Lucania. Abruzzo and Molise were identified as regions in the first draft. They were later merged into Abruzzo e Molise in the constitution of 1948. Implementation of regional autonomy was postponed until the first Regional Elections of 1970, the ruling Christian Democracy party did not want the opposition Italian Communist Party to gain power in the regions, where it was historically rooted. Regions acquired a significant level of autonomy following a reform in 2001. In June 2006 the proposals, which had been associated with Lega Nord. The results varied considerably among the regions, ranging from 55. 3% in favour in Veneto to 82% against in Calabria, number of regions controlled by each coalition since 1995, Macroregions are the first-level NUTS of the European Union. These regions, whose statutes are approved by their councils, were created in 1970. Since the constitutional reform of 2001 they have had residual legislative powers, the regions have exclusive legislative power with respect to any matters not expressly reserved to state law. Yet their financial autonomy is quite modest, they just keep 20% of all levied taxes, Article 116 of the Italian Constitution grants to five regions home rule, acknowledging their powers in relation to legislation, administration and finance. These regions became autonomous in order to take into account cultural differences, moreover, the government wanted to prevent their secession from Italy after the Second World War. Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol constitutes a special case, the region is nearly powerless, and the powers granted by the regions statute are mostly exercised by the two autonomous provinces within the region, Trentino and South Tyrol. In this case, the regional institution plays a coordinating role, the latter is directly elected by the citizens of each region, with the exceptions of Aosta Valley and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, where he is chosen by the regional council. Under the 1995 electoral law, the winning coalition receives a majority of seats on the council
27.
Veneto
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Veneto or Venetia is one of the twenty regions of Italy. Its population is five million, ranking fifth in Italy. The regions capital and largest city is Venice, Veneto was part of the Roman Empire until the 5th century AD. Later, after a period, it was part of the Republic of Venice until 1797. Venice ruled for centuries one of the largest and richest maritime republics. The Statute of Veneto describes Venetians as a people, besides Italian, most inhabitants also speak Venetian. The region is home to a notable nationalist movement, the regions largest party is the Venetist/Padanist Liga Veneta, a founding member of Lega Nord. The current President of Veneto is Luca Zaia, elected in 2010 with 60. 2% of the vote and the support of Lega Nord, The People of Freedom, Veneto is the 8th largest region in Italy, with a total area of 18,398.9 km2. At its northernmost corner it borders also on Austria, the north-south extension of Veneto is 210 km from the Austrian border to the mouth of the River Po. By area, 29% of its surface is mountainous, the highest massif in the Dolomites is the Marmolada-massif at 3,342 m. Other dolomitic peaks are the Tre Cime di Lavaredo and the Pale di San Martino, the Venetian Prealps are not as high and range between 700 m and 2,200 m. Fossil deposits are abundant there. The plain itself is subdivided into the plain and the lower plain. The lower plain is both a mainstay of production and the most populated part of the region. Several rivers flow through the region, the Po, Adige, Brenta, Bacchiglione, Livenza, Piave, the eastern shore of the largest lake in Italy, Lake Garda, belongs to Veneto. The coastline covers approximately 200 km, of which 100 km are beaches, the coasts of the Adriatic Sea are characterised by the Venetian Lagoon, a flat terrain with ponds, marshes and islands. The Po Delta to the south features sandbars and dunes along the coastline, the inland portion contains cultivable land recently reclaimed by a system of canals and dykes. Fish ponds have been created there as well, the delta and the lagoon are a stopping-point for migratory birds
28.
Berlusconi III Cabinet
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The Berlusconi III Cabinet was the cabinet of the government of Italy from 23 April 2005 to 17 May 2006. It was the 58th cabinet of the Italian Republic, and the cabinet of the XIV Legislature. House of Freedoms did not do as well in the 2003 local elections as it did in the 2001 national elections, in common with many other European governing groups, in the 2004 elections of the European Parliament, gaining 43. 37% support. Forza Italias support was reduced from 29. 5% to 21. 0%. As an outcome of these results the other parties, whose electoral results were more satisfactory, asked Berlusconi. In the 2005 regional elections, the gubernatorial candidates won in 12 out of 14 regions where control of local governments. Berlusconis coalition kept only two of the bodies up for re-election. Three parties, Union of Christian and Centre Democrats, National Alliance and Socialist Party - New PSI, the Italian Premier, after some hesitation, then presented to the President of the Republic a request for the dissolution of his government on 20 April 2005. On 23 April he formed a new government with the allies, reshuffling ministers. A key point required by the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats for their support was that the strong focus on tax reduction central to the governments ambitions be changed. During this second cabinet was approved a new electoral law. A white paper for an electoral system was presented to the Chamber of Deputies on September 13,2005. The new proposal was approved by parliament and this could have been avoided if the small opposition parties ran on a common ticket. Aim of this bill of reform was to reduce the number of parties and this proposal of law was strongly questioned by the opposition coalition, who defined it an attempted coup. Opposition leader Romano Prodi said it was totally unacceptable, the voting count started on October 11, the lower house of Italian parliament then approved the electoral reform on October 14. The new electoral was then approved on December 16,2005. Roberto Calderoli, the author of this electoral reform, defined this law a rascality. Ironically, the new law allowed Romano Prodi to count on a large majority in the Chamber and to obtain majority also in the Senate
29.
Italian general election, 2006
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The 2006 Italian general election for the two Chambers of the Italian Parliament was held on 9 and 10 April 2006. Romano Prodi, leader of the centre-left coalition The Union, narrowly defeated the incumbent Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, initial exit polls suggested a victory for Prodi, but the results narrowed as the count progressed. On 11 April 2006, Prodi declared victory, Berlusconi never conceded defeat explicitly, preliminary results showed The Union leading the House of Freedoms in the Chamber of Deputies, with 340 seats to 277, thanks to obtaining a majority bonus. One more seat is allied with The Union and 7 more seats in the foreign constituency. The House of Freedoms had secured a majority of Senate seats elected within Italy. Even so, Berlusconi refused to concede defeat, claiming unproven fraud, the House of Freedoms was the coalition supporting the incumbent government led by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and mainly included the same parties as in the previous general election. The NPSI contested the election with a joint list with the Christian Democracy for the Autonomies, on 27 October 2005, Lorenzo Cesa was appointed as new UDC secretary, becoming the successor of Follini himself. The coalition announced a system, meaning that the Prime Ministerial candidate will be the political leader, among Casini, Fini and Berlusconi. Since Berlusconis party was known to be by far the largest one, prodis candidacy was confirmed by a national primary election, held on 16 October 2005. The former coalition was enlarged in order to cover the whole ensemble of Italian centre-left to left-wing factions, however, Bobo Craxi was able to enter in the Lower House, as he was one of the leading candidates for The Olive Tree in Lombardy. The Union is also supported by a number of parties and movements. For some time, Silvio Berlusconi had challenged Romano Prodi to a debate on national television, Prodi, however, said he would accept only if certain rules had been set. Possibly because he thought he was behind in the polls, Berlusconi saw the debate as a chance to turn the tables and it is notable that, in the 2001 elections, it was Berlusconi who refused to meet the centre-left candidate, Francesco Rutelli. Two televised debates were set by the Parliamentary Committee of Inspection on RAI, however, Prodi contested the deliberation of this Committee, which allowed Berlusconi to also hold a final televised speech after the debates as Prime Minister. Prodi refused to participate in any debate until this final speech had been cancelled, the issue was resolved on 3 March, when Berlusconi finally agreed to cancel the final speech. The debates lasted about 90 minutes each, did not include commercials, and had a time for each answer and each reply. The candidates were forbidden to bring any kind of notes with them, even though they could write some down during the debate. This set of rules was very unusual in Italian political talk shows, at the end of the debates, the candidates are allowed to make a final statement of 3 minutes
30.
The Union (Italy)
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The Union was an heterogenous centre-left political and electoral alliance of political parties in Italy. The Union was led by Romano Prodi, Prime Minister of Italy from April 2006 to April 2008, the Union was the direct heir of The Olive Tree coalition which represented the centre-left in the 1996 and 2001 general elections. However, The Union also included parties of the radical left, the parties which were part of the coalition for most of the time are, DS, DL and MRE contested elections as The Olive Tree federation. The Democratic Party, a merger of DS and DL, replaced its predecessor parties as a member of The Union upon its foundation in October 2007, also during that time, the SDI became the Socialist Party. As of 2005, the coalition was assumed to be led by Prodi, primary elections were a novelty in Italian politics, as the proportional system in place until the early 1990s was supposed to present sufficient variety to electors. With the new electoral system, two clear blocks emerged since 1996. The primary elections for The Union took place on 16 October 2005, the institute of primary election came under criticism from some centre-left moderates, as in their opinion it had produced a useless candidate doomed to failure. When the primary elections were first proposed, they were meant as a plebiscite for Romano Prodi. The secretary of the Communist Refoundation Party, Fausto Bertinotti, then announced he would run for the leadership, even if only to act as a symbolic candidate, after some time, more candidates were presented. The seven candidates for the leadership of The Union were, in the order in which appear on the electoral ballot, Fausto Bertinotti. Antonio Di Pietro, former prosecutor in the Mani Pulite investigation. Ivan Scalfarotto, a living in London and a blogger. The faceless candidate, formally represented in person by Simona Panzino and this was a symbolic candidate from the anti-globalization movement. Some priests close to these movements were initially suggested for the name to place on the ballots. Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, secretary of the Federation of the Greens, other than environmentalism, he had a civil rights-oriented and pacifist agenda. Romano Prodi, leader of The Olive Tree coalition, former Prime Minister of Italy, Prodi was supported by DS, DL and PdCI. Clemente Mastella, leader of the Union of Democrats for Europe, a former ally of Silvio Berlusconi, he was considered the most Catholic and centrist candidate. The primary election had been held nationwide on 16 October 2005, Most of the party leaders claimed a result of 1 million voters would be a good success for the election
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Italian general election, 2008
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A snap general election was held in Italy on 13–14 April 2008. Under Italian law, elections must be held within 70 days of the dissolution, the voting determined the leader of Italys 62nd government since the end of World War II. The coalition led by ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from The People of Freedom party defeated that of former Mayor of Rome, Walter Veltroni of the Democratic Party. On 24 January 2008 Prime Minister of Italy Romano Prodi lost a vote of confidence in the Senate by a vote of 161 to 156 votes, causing the downfall of his government. Prodis resignation led President Giorgio Napolitano to request the president of the Senate, Franco Marini, the other possibility would have been to call for early elections immediately. The decision of former Minister of Justice Mastella arrived a few days after the confirmation of the Constitutional Court which confirmed the referendum to modify the electoral system. As stated many times by Minister Mastella, if the referendum would have confirmed this would have led directly to the fall of the government. The fall of the government would disrupt a pending election-law referendum that if passed would make it harder for small parties like Mastellas to gain seats in parliament, uDEURs defection forced the question of whether Prodi still had the parliamentarian support to govern. Presenting a motion of confidence to parliament, he won easily in the lower house of the Parliament, the Chamber of Deputies. Yet a win in the upper house – or Senate – seemed unlikely, the vote, held between 3pm and 9pm, was heated and dramatic. During its course the UDEUR party Senator Stefano Cusumano decided to confirm the confidence and to support the prime minister, even against the orders of his partys leader. He was subsequently subjected to the abuse of his colleagues, being called a faggot, traitor. At this point Cusumano apparently fainted, and was carried out on a stretcher, cusumanos defection had no effect, however, Prodi lost the vote with 161 to 156 votes, and promptly handed in his resignation. On 30 January, Napolitano appointed Franco Marini to try to form a government with the goal of changing the current electoral system. President Napolitano summoned Bertinotti and Marini, the two speakers of the houses of the Italian parliament, acknowledging the end of the legislature and he dissolved parliament on 6 February 2008. Major competitors in the election were Silvio Berlusconi, as leader of the opposition coalition. Berlusconis right coalition was leading by a significant margin in opinion polls, veltronis campaign has been compared to Barack Obamas presidential run in the United States. The most apparent of the similarities is his slogan, Si può fare, the main four left-wing parties not part of the PD decided to contest the election together under the banner of The Left – The Rainbow
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Movement for the Autonomies
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The Movement for the Autonomies is a regionalist and Christian democratic political party in Italy. The party demands economic development, greater autonomy and legislative powers for Sicily and its Sicilian section is named Party of Sicilians. The MpA elected five deputies and two senators, in January 2008 the MpA formed a political pact with Italy of the Centre, under which Vincenzo Scotti, leader of IdC, became president of the party. At the 2008 general election the party won 1. 1% of the vote and obtained 8 deputies and 2 senators, thanks to the alliance with The People of Freedom, after the election the MpA joined the Berlusconi IV Cabinet. As part of its strategy the party was joined by some small northern regionalist parties, Lombardia Autonoma. The alliance gained a mere 2. 2% of the vote, thus returning no MEPs, since the election there were talks about the foundation of a new Party of the South, of which the MpA would have been the core. Lombardo appointed no members of the official PdL and of the UDC, the break-up of the alliance with the official PdL in Sicily and all around the South led to a painful split. In January 2010 Vincenzo Scotti and four out of eight. In November, as an ally of Gianfranco Finis FLI, the MpA quit Berlusconis government, on 15 December 2010 the MpA was a founding member of the New Pole for Italy along with the UDC, FLI and ApI. In March 2011 Lombardo announced that the MpA would soon merge into a party of the South. In August Lombardo resigned also from President of Sicily, prompting an early election, the Sicilian section of the MpA was renamed as Party of Sicilians. Lombardo decided not to stand for re-election and the PdS chose to support Gianfranco Micciché, leader of Great South, for President, Micciché won 15. 4% of the vote and the PdS obtained a mere 9. 5%. The PdS/MpA failed to pass the electoral thresholds in the 2013 general election, attaguile chose to team up with Lega Nord in the Lega Nord–Autonomies parliamentary group. Attaguile later left the PdS/MpA and joined to Us with Salvini, Federal Secretary, Raffaele Lombardo, Giovanni Pistorio / Agazio Loiero Federal President, Vincenzo Scotti Southern Italy autonomist movements
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Berlusconi IV Cabinet
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Berlusconi IV Cabinet was the cabinet of the Italy from 8 May 2008 to 16 November 2011. It was the cabinet led by Silvio Berlusconi, the longest-serving Prime Minister of Italy of the Italian Republic. It was a government composed mainly of two parties, The People of Freedom and the Northern League. Key ministers included Franco Frattini, Giulio Tremonti, Roberto Maroni, at its formation, the government included 22 ministers and 39 under-secretaries, for a total of 61 members. At the end of its term the cabinet was composed of 24 ministers,4 deputy ministers and 39 under-secretaries, with 1287 days of tenure, it was second in longevity only to Berlusconis second government in the history of the Italian Republic. In the snap parliamentary elections held on 13/14 April 2008 this coalition won against Walter Veltronis centre-left coalition in both houses of the Italian Parliament, Berlusconi and his ministers were sworn in on 8 May 2008. On 10 October the Chamber of Deputies rejected the law on the budget of the State proposed by the government. As a result of this event Berlusconi moved for a vote in the Chamber on 14 October, he won the vote with just 316 votes to 310. Among other things, his failure to tackle Italys debt crisis with an estimated debt sum of €1.9 trillion has urged Berlusconi to leave office. The austerity package was passed, it will raise €59, the resignation also came at a difficult time for Berlusconi, as he was involved in numerous trials for corruption, fraud and sex offences. He was often found guilty in lower courts but used loopholes in Italys legal system to evade incarceration, Berlusconi had also failed to meet some of his pre-election promises and had failed to prevent economic decline and introduce serious reforms. Many critics of Berlusconi accused him of using his power primarily to protect his own business ventures, umberto Bossi, leader of the Lega Nord, a partner in Berlusconis right-wing coalition, was quoted as informing reporters outside parliament, We asked the prime minister to step aside. CNN reported on 7 November that Berlusconi had previously denied the rumors that he was going to resign and had stated on his Facebook page that The rumors of my resignation are groundless. On 12 November 2011, after a meeting with his cabinet. He announced this to the Italian public by telephone on one of his television channels, Italian news agency ANSA reported that Berlusconi had remarked to his aides that This is something that deeply saddens me. Berlusconi conceded that he had lost his majority and concluded that things like who leads or who doesnt lead the government was less important than doing what is right for the country. Berlusconi issued a statement that he would not stand for office in Italy again after the budget defeat, in his resignation he was said to have also mentioned eight traitors, former allies who had abstained. Party breakdown of cabinet ministers, Italian Government - Berlusconi IV Cabinet
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Liberal conservatism
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It is a political position which incorporates support for civil liberties and capitalism, along with some social-conservative positions. As both conservatism and liberalism have had different meanings over time and across countries, the liberal conservatism has been used in quite different ways. It usually contrasts with aristocratic conservatism, which rejects the principle of equality as something in discordance with human nature, consequently, in the United States the term liberal conservatism is not used and American modern liberalism happens to be quite different from the European brand. The opposite is true in Latin America, where economically liberal conservatism is often labelled under the rubric of neoliberalism both in culture and academic discourse. In much of central and northwestern Europe, especially in Germanic and traditionally Protestant countries, often this involves stressing free-market economics and the belief in individual responsibility together with the defense of civil rights, and support for a limited welfare state. In the modern European discourse, liberal conservatism usually encompasses centre-right political outlooks that reject, at least to some extent and this position is also associated with support for moderate forms of social safety net and environmentalism. Historically, in the 18th and 19th centuries, conservatism comprised a set of principles based on concern for established tradition, respect for authority, and religious values. This form of traditionalist or classical conservatism is often considered to be exemplified by the writings of Joseph de Maistre, contemporaneous liberalism – now recalled as classical liberalism – advocated both political freedom for individuals and a free market in the economic sphere. The maxim of liberal conservatism, according to scholar Andrew Vincent, is economics is prior to politics, nonetheless, in most countries the term liberal is used to describe those with free-market economic views. This is the case, for example, in continental Europe, Australia and Latin America
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Conservatism
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Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes retaining traditional social institutions in the context of culture and civilization. The term, historically associated with right-wing politics, has since used to describe a wide range of views. There is no set of policies that are universally regarded as conservative, because the meaning of conservatism depends on what is considered traditional in a given place. Thus conservatives from different parts of the world—each upholding their respective traditions—may disagree on a range of issues. In contrast to the definition of conservatism, political theorists such as Corey Robin define conservatism primarily in terms of a general defense of social. In Great Britain, conservative ideas emerged in the Tory movement during the Restoration period, Toryism supported a hierarchical society with a monarch who ruled by divine right. Tories opposed the idea that sovereignty derived from the people, and rejected the authority of parliament, Robert Filmers Patriarcha, or the Natural Power of Kings, published posthumously in 1680 but written before the English Civil War of 1642–1651, became accepted as the statement of their doctrine. However, the Glorious Revolution of 1688 destroyed this principle to some degree by establishing a government in England. Faced with defeat, the Tories reformed their movement, now holding that sovereignty was vested in the three estates of Crown, Lords, and Commons rather than solely in the Crown, Toryism became marginalized during the long period of Whig ascendancy in the 18th century. Conservatives typically see Richard Hooker as the father of conservatism, along with the Marquess of Halifax, David Hume. Halifax promoted pragmatism in government, whilst Hume argued against political rationalism and utopianism, Burke served as the private secretary to the Marquis of Rockingham and as official pamphleteer to the Rockingham branch of the Whig party. Together with the Tories, they were the conservatives in the late 18th century United Kingdom, Burkes views were a mixture of liberal and conservative. He supported the American Revolution of 1765–1783 but abhorred the violence of the French Revolution and he insisted on standards of honor derived from the medieval aristocratic tradition, and saw the aristocracy as the nations natural leaders. That meant limits on the powers of the Crown, since he found the institutions of Parliament to be better informed than commissions appointed by the executive and he favored an established church, but allowed for a degree of religious toleration. Burke justified the order on the basis of tradition, tradition represented the wisdom of the species and he valued community. Burke was a leading theorist in his day, finding extreme idealism an endangerment to broader liberties, despite their influence on future conservative thought, none of these early contributors were explicitly involved in Tory politics. Hooker lived in the 16th century, long before the advent of toryism, whilst Hume was an apolitical philosopher, Burke described himself as a Whig. Shortly after Burkes death in 1797, conservatism revived as a political force as the Whigs suffered a series of internal divisions
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Lega Nord
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Lega Nord, whose complete name is Lega Nord per lIndipendenza della Padania, is a regionalist political party in Italy. The party is referred to as Northern League by English-language media and literature. The partys political programme advocates the transformation of Italy into a state, fiscal federalism and greater regional autonomy. At times the LN has advocated Padanian nationalism and the secession of the North, prior to the partys adoption of the term, Padania was infrequently used to name the Po Valley and was promoted since 1963 by sports journalist Gianni Brera as a modern name for Cisalpine Gaul. Lega Nords founder and former long-standing leader is Umberto Bossi, who was the secretary from 1991 to 2012. He was succeeded by Roberto Maroni, then in December 2013 Matteo Salvini became the new secretary after defeating Bossi in the leadership election, lorenzo Fontana and Giancarlo Giorgetti are deputy secretaries. Other leading members include Luca Zaia, Roberto Calderoli, Gian Marco Centinaio, Massimiliano Fedriga, Roberto Cota, Roberto Castelli, Francesco Speroni, Massimo Bitonci and Attilio Fontana. At the 1983 general election Liga Veneta, based in Veneto, elected a deputy, Achille Tramarin, at the 1987 general election another regional party, Lega Lombarda, based in Lombardy, gained national prominence when its leader Umberto Bossi was elected to the Senate. The two parties, along with other regionalist outfits, ran as Alleanza Nord in the 1989 European Parliament election, cultural influences from bordering countries in the North and resentment against illegal immigrants were also exploited. The partys electoral successes began roughly at a time when public disillusionment with the political parties was at its height. The Tangentopoli corruption scandals, which invested most of the parties, were unveiled from 1992 on. Lega Nords first electoral breakthrough was at the 1990 regional elections, having gained 8. 7% of the vote,56 deputies and 26 senators, it became the fourth largest party of the country and within Parliament. The party thus fought the 1994 general election in alliance with Berlusconis Forza Italia party within the Pole of Freedoms coalition, the position of President Chamber of Deputies was thus given to a leghista, Irene Pivetti, a young woman hailing from the Catholic faction of the party. However, the alliance with Berlusconi and the government itself were both short-lived, the latter collapsed before the end of the year, with the League being instrumental in its demise. When, in December, Bossi finally decided to withdraw from the government, in January 1995 the League gave a vote of confidence to the newly formed cabinet led by Lamberto Dini, along with the Italian Peoples Party and the Democratic Party of the Left. All these groups merged into FI, while a few other MPs, including Pierluigi Petrini, floor leader in the Chamber of Deputies. By 1996 total of 40 deputies and 17 senators had left the party, while Maroni, between 1995 and 1998 Lega Nord joined centre-left governing coalitions in many local contexts, notably including the Province of Padua to the city of Udine. After a huge success at the 1996 general election, its best result ever, Lega Nord announced that it wanted the secession of northern Italy under the name of Padania
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Christian Democratic Centre
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The Christian Democratic Centre was a Christian democratic political party in Italy from 1994 to 2002. The CCD was a member of the European Peoples Party and its leaders were Pier Ferdinando Casini and Clemente Mastella. The CCD represented the right-wing of the defunct DC, while the PPI was largely the heir of the partys left-wing, after the election the CCD joined the Berlusconi I Cabinet, with Mastella minister of Labour and Francesco DOnofrio minister of Education. After the sudden fall of the government in December 1994, caused by Lega Nords exit, the CCD formed a joint list with the CDU. The alliance proved successful, gaining 5. 8% of the vote,30 deputies and 15 senators, however, as the centre-right lost the election to The Olive Tree centre-left coalition, the party was in opposition. In 1998 Mastella and several MPs left the party to form, along with the CDU, the Democratic Union for the Republic, which supported the centre-left government led by Massimo DAlema. In 1999 the UDR was transformed into the Union of Democrats for Europe, while the CDU was re-organised as an independent party, Casini was elected President of the Chamber of Deputies, while Carlo Giovanardi was made minister of Relations with Parliament in Berlusconi II Cabinet. In 2002 the CCD, the CDU and European Democracy, which had won 2. 3% of the vote in 2001, formally merged into a joint party, namely the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats
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Rocco Buttiglione
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Rocco Buttiglione is an Italian Union of Christian and Centre Democrats politician and an academic. Buttiglione is a Professor of political science at Saint Pius V University in Rome and he served as a minister for EU policies and then as Minister for Cultural Assets and Activities in Silvio Berlusconis governments. In 2005 Buttiglione received a doctoral degree for his commitment to the ideas of liberty. In May 2006, he ran for mayor of Turin. Rocco Buttiglione was born in Gallipoli, Apulia, on the heel of Italy He studied law in Turin and he was also a professor of philosophy and acting rector at the International Academy for Philosophy in Liechtenstein. Buttiglione eventually joined forces with Berlusconi and the Northern League, led by Umberto Bossi, Buttiglione was elected a Parliamentary Deputy for Milan in May 2001, and joined Berlusconis new government as the European Union Policy Minister. From 2005-06 Buttiglione was Minister for Cultural Assets and Activities, as a result, his place in the Italian government was granted to another member of the UDC. Rocco Buttigliones apparent qualifications included speaking foreign languages, including English, German, French, Portuguese, in 2004, José Manuel Barroso included him on his list of nominees for the European Commission, with a designated portfolio of Justice, Freedom and Security. During his hearing before the European Parliaments Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice And Home Affairs, Buttiglione - a Catholic - was asked about his stance on homosexuality and women. Buttiglione responded that while he considered homosexuality a sin, his opinion would not prevent him from moving against discrimination of homosexuals. He also stated his belief that the family exists in order to allow women to have children, on 11 October the committee voted by 27-26 not to endorse the nomination. After it became clear that a vote on 27 October in the European Parliament, to approve the Commission, would not succeed, Italian conservative and Catholic politicians and church leaders rallied to defend Buttigliones views. This decision shows the face of Europe, a face which we dont like. Its fundamentalist, which is not on, said Justice Minister Roberto Castelli. The new Commission will be opposed to any kind of discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender, or religious beliefs. The new soft totalitarianism that is advancing on the wants to have a state religion. It is an atheist, nihilistic religion - but it is a religion that is obligatory for all complained Buttiglione in subsequent comments. However, there were rumors that Giulio Tremonti, supported by the Northern League, might be picked for the job
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