London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 07, 2026

Berlusconi calls Meloni names as Italy’s right-wing coalition spars

Berlusconi calls Meloni names as Italy’s right-wing coalition spars

The Forza Italia leader calls Brothers of Italy leader Giorgia Melon ‘patronizing’ and ‘bossy’ in a note.

Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi appeared to describe Italy’s likely next prime minister and his supposed ally Giorgia Meloni as “patronizing, bossy, arrogant and offensive” in a note photographed by the press.

The epithets, scrawled on a piece of paper in the Italian parliament, were published by La Repubblica on Friday and escalated a row between two of the three parties attempting to form Italy’s next government.

“No willingness to change, she is one with which you cannot get along,” the note concluded.

“An adjective is missing: I am not blackmailable,” Meloni shot back on Friday evening.

The far-right Brothers of Italy leader is seeking to form a government after her coalition with Forza Italia and Matteo Salvini’s League swept elections last month.

But arguments over ministerial and parliamentary postings have soured the mood.

Berlusconi has refused to endorse the Brothers of Italy’s Ignazio La Russa — a collector of fascist memorabilia — as the next speaker of the country’s Senate.

Salvini told La Stampa that he had warned Berlusconi not to fight Meloni, whose party won more than one and a half times as many votes as Forza Italia and the League combined.

“I warned him, ‘Look, Giorgia has the numbers, you can’t get in the way,'” Salvini reportedly said.

Enrico Letta, the leader of the opposition Democratic Party, leaped into the discord on Saturday.

“It does not seem to me to be a majority capable of giving a solid government to the country. They are only able to give the country an internal war, a permanent conflict,” La Stampa reported Letta as saying.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Laura Trott Pledges Tighter Controls on Political Activism in UK Classrooms
Welsh Ministers Launch Long-Term Review of North Wales and Anglesey Crossings
Welsh Government Orders 18-Month Study of Road Solutions Around Newport
Reform UK MP Sarah Pochin Faces Scrutiny Over £800,000 Second Home Purchase
British Households Grow More Concerned About Fuel and Energy Prices
NHS Leaders Warn of Rising Winter Pressure on Emergency Departments
Kemi Badenoch Proposes £2.3 Billion Employer National Insurance Cut for Young Workers
Middle East Conflict Could Erase UK Fiscal Headroom, Economists Warn
Manchester City Found Guilty of Multiple Premier League Financial Rule Breaches
UK Security Services Find Strong Indications of Iranian Role in RAF Fairford Incident
Costa Coffee Returns to Operating Profit on Iced Drinks and Menu Changes
Asos Warns Customers After Unauthorized Access to Retail App and Data
Kemi Badenoch Puts Growth and Deregulation at Center of Conservative Conference
Campaigners Warn of Deepening Social Care Crisis for Disabled Adults
Study Finds Rising Early-Onset Cancer Rates Among Adults Under 50 in Britain
UK Coach Operators Warn High Diesel Prices Could Force Route Cuts
FCA Opens Independent Review Into Handling of Epstein-Linked Whistleblower Case
Argentina Vows to Block Falkland Islands Offshore Oil Development
UK Chancellor Prepares Fiscal Measures and Welfare Reforms Ahead of Autumn Budget
Sainsbury’s and Morrisons Explore Potential Multi-Billion-Pound Merger
UK Weighs Tariffs on Chinese Electric Vehicles to Align With European Union
UK Threatens Diplomatic Expulsions Over Planned Closure of East Jerusalem Consulate
UK Energy Price Cap Hits Three-Year High as Middle East Conflict Raises Costs
Seventh Arrest Made in Suspected Terror Plot at RAF Fairford
Systemic Education Collapse Sparks Mass Student Uprisings in France
Green Party Faces Backlash Over Resolution Equating Zionism With Racism
Conservatives Debate Scrapping Environmental Rules for New Homes
Cornwall Insight Warns UK Energy Bills Could Approach £2,000 This Winter
UK Coach Operators Warn of Service Cuts as Diesel Prices Exceed £2
Scottish Parliament Approves £68 Billion Budget With New Tax and Property Measures
FCA Opens Independent Review Into Handling of Epstein Whistleblower
UK Government Drops Plan to Suspend Jury Trials in England and Wales
Bank of England Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Markets Watch November
Two Iranian Nationals Charged Over Alleged Plot Targeting Manchester Jewish Community
UK Fiscal Headroom Halves to £11 Billion Ahead of Budget, EY Warns
US Bomber Withdrawal From RAF Fairford Prompts UK Security Review
Sarah Wakfer Appointed Chair of Northern Ireland’s Health and Care Regulator
Scotland Housing Completions Fall to 11-Year Low Amid National Shortage
UK Water Companies Face Tougher Oversight and Unannounced Regulatory Inspections
Middle East Conflict Pushes UK Fuel and Wholesale Energy Prices Higher
Andy Burnham Raises Prospect of Second Brexit Referendum in Review of UK-EU Relations
EY Warns UK Fiscal Headroom Has Halved to £11 Billion Ahead of Autumn Budget
BT Accused of Pressuring Vulnerable Customers During Digital Landline Shift
British Carmakers Warn of Growing Pressure From EU-China Tariff Dispute
Green Party of England and Wales Adopts Motion Defining Zionism as Racism
Medical Charity Threatens NHS Legal Action Over Two-Year Autism and ADHD Assessment Waits
British Transport Police Report Record Rise in Violence on Railways
Glasgow Council Workers Face Pay Cuts Under Fire-and-Rehire Plan
British Medical Groups Press Prime Minister Andy Burnham to Cancel £330 Million Palantir NHS Contract
UK Faces Record Bluetongue Outbreak Across Livestock Farms
×