There was in Italy a hidden demand for a boring government which would try to tell the truth in non-political jargon.

If the euro becomes a factor promoting Europe's drifting apart, then the foundation of the European project is destroyed.

This is certainly not the first case in which a merger approved in one place hasn't gone through in the other. There was a case last year where the merger between two EU companies was approved here and blocked in the U.S.

I believe that reforms will not really take hold if they do not gradually come into the culture of the people.

As to the question of elected or not elected, each member of the European Commission has been appointed jointly by the governments of the 15 member states, and undergone individual scrutiny and a vote of confidence from the European Parliament.

Italy needed structural reforms to become more competitive.

The Italian economy has been held back for decades.