Italy--Europe's worst environmental offender, EU report says (Independent)

Italy is Europe's worst environmental offender, EU report says
By Peter Popham in Rome
Published: 09 June 2006

Italy has been singled out as the worst environmental offender in Europe in a report by the EU's Environment Commissioner, Stavros Dimas.

The report accuses Italian authorities of failing to do enough to tackle soaring levels of pollution. The country is being taken to task for breaking environmental rules in no fewer than 80 separate cases, more than twice the number of France and Britain (37 each) and well ahead of the second worst offender, Spain (59). Eight of the cases are expected to conclude in fines worth a total of about €100m (£69m).

Mr Dimas did not mince his words. "Notwithstanding previous admonitions," he said, "Italy has not completely respected community norms on the environment and has not co-operated fully with our requests for information.

"The Italian authorities must rapidly adopt the necessary measures so that Italian citizens and the environment of their country are able to benefit from the protection afforded by community rights."

Italy's new Minister of the Environment, Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, has promised a fresh initiative. "We want to give the EU a strong and clear signal of discontinuity from the behaviour of the Berlusconi government," he said this week. "Among other reasons we are concerned about the economic consequences of the environmental failings of the Berlusconi government, which have made Italy the black sheep of Europe.
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more: http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article753711.ece

Berlusconi is one of the richest men in Europe, and used his publishing empire to help win election. With so many similarities to Bu**sh**, you have to wonder why he wasn't even more of a Mussolini to Bu**sh**'s Hitler. Or maybe he thought he should get top billing.