Silvio Berlusconi, female minister laid bare in painting

October 15th, 2009 ROME - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has backed old chum and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to be the next President of the European Union. In an open letter to Il Foglio, the newspaper part-owned by his estranged wife Veronica, which is mounting a campaign in support of Blair, Berlusconi said: "Tony Blair has everything it takes to become the first President of the European Council." The daily's front-paged article further goes on to say: "My government and I will work to ensure we do not lose a great political legacy, made with courage, equilibrium and prudence without uncertainty." The friendship between the two men goes back to the start of the Iraq war, which Berlusconi staunchly supported.

September 26th, 2009 LONDON - Michelle Obama appeared to be keeping her distance from controversy-hit Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi at the opening reception for the G20 summit in Pittsburgh. The US First Lady was said to have met the politician with a classic US-European impasse with President Barack Obama in the middle.

July 30th, 2009 LONDON - Patrizia D'Addario, the escort girl who claims to have slept with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, has been accused of attempting to murder a former boyfriend. D'Addario, 42, who recorded her encounter with the 72-year-old tycoon on her mobile telephone, visited police in Bari on Wednesday and sources at the prosecutor's office said she was there to file a counter claim against her former lover's wife and to discuss the allegations of attempted murder, reports The Telegraph.

July 4th, 2009 LONDON - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who has been going through a divorce, has decided to solve the problem of not having a First Lady to play host to other leaders' spouses by appointing a former topless model to play the part. Former calendar girl Mara Carfagna, who is now Italy's Equal Opportunities Minister, will be looking after the wives of the world's top leaders at the G8 summit next week, reports the Scotsman.

June 29th, 2009 LONDON - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi might be questioned regarding the sleazy allegations swirling around him. The 72-year-old media tycoon-turned-politician, though not under investigation, might be quizzed as part of the inquiry into Giampaolo Tarantini, a local businessman at the centre of a scandal involving women sent to parties hosted by the Prime Minister.

June 24th, 2009 LONDON - Despite allegations of sleaze swirling around Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian premiere tasted success in provincial elections. In the elections, the 72-year-old tycoon's Right People of Freedom party was handed nine more provinces.

June 19th, 2009 LONDON - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi doesn't need to pay for female company - he can get plenty of women free, his lawyer said. Following fresh revelations about the premier dominated Italian newspapers, Niccolo Ghedini, Berlusconi's chief legal adviser, made the comments.

June 1st, 2009 LONDON - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has announced "cruises and seaside holidays" for those rendered homeless by the earthquake that hit the country last month. The earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale had left 299 people dead and hundreds more injured in the tremor, which hit the city of L'Aquila.

May 10th, 2009 LONDON - Noemi Letizia, the 18-year-old accused of being at the heart of Silvio Berlusconi's divorce, has claimed that the Italian prime minister will launch her into a career in politics. Letizia, who affectionately calls Berlusconi "Papi", came under media glare after Veronica Lario, the Italian leader's wife, announced their divorce with the words, "I cannot be with a man who spends time with under-age women".

May 7th, 2009 LONDON - Gaff-prone Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is once again in the news for making suggestive remarks to a female councillor while touring an earthquake-hit region. Lia Giovanzzi Beltrami, 41, has confirmed that the 72-year-old premier made the remark in the Abruzzo region.

May 6th, 2009 LONDON - After being slammed by his wife as 'someone who cavorts with minors', Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has come under fire from the Catholic Church. An editorial in Catholic daily Avvenire, the official newspaper of the Italian Catholic Bishops Conference, described his behaviour as 'worrying', reports the Telegraph.

May 6th, 2009 NEW YORK - Rumours are abuzz that the 18-year-old girl at the center of the storm surrounding Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is his daughter. As per sources, Noemi Letizia calls the Italian leader 'Papi' or 'Daddy', reports the New York Post.

May 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - After calling himself the Jesus Christ of Italian politics, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi boasted yesterday that he's the world's most popular leader. The 72-year-old said opinion poll findings in his possession showed his popularity at just over 75 per cent, making him far more popular than the American president, Barack Obama, or any other head of government.

April 15th, 2009 SYDNEY - Known for his reputation with the ladies, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi recently made another gaffe when he told a female doctor that he "wouldn't mind being resuscitated by her." Berlusconi met Dr. Fabiola Carrieri, an intensive care specialist from Milan, during a visit to Abruzzo earthquake survivor camps.

March 27th, 2009 LONDON - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who last year referred to Barack Obama as "sun-tanned", has returned to the same subject after he claimed the difference between their leadership styles was that he is 'paler'. The 72-year-old made the comment to a reporter who compared the two leaders and their handling of the economic crisis.