Veronica Lario, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's wife, has publicly attacked her husband's choice of showgirls for candidates in the European Parliament, reports Times Online. It came out last week that the Prime Minister was vetting beautiful female candidates for the upcoming elections, including a Big Brother star and various actresses.
Times Online reports Ms. Lario's statement on her husband's actions:
"I want it to be quite clear that my children and I are victims and not accomplices in this situation," Ms Lario said. "We have to endure it, and it makes us suffer."
She added: "Fortunately, for some time now there has been a future for women both in the business world and in politics, and this is already a global reality."
In the public e-mail sent to Italian national news Agency, Ansa, Lario expressed her disgust, explains the Telegraph:
She criticised Mr Berlusconi for recently dropping in on the 18th birthday party of a young blonde model - the daughter of a family friend - at a disco near Naples.
"What do I think of it?" she wrote. "It really surprised me, given that he never went to the 18th birthday parties of his own children."
According to AP, this is not the first time that Berlusconi has had tensions arise with his wife:
Berlusconi has already faced trouble at home and widespread criticism for flirting with women and filling his political ranks with female stars, including a Cabinet minister.
Two years ago, Lario received a quick and public apology from Berlusconi when she wrote to a newspaper complaining about a compliment her husband had paid to TV starlet Mara Carfagna, now the minister for equal opportunities.
See pictures of the women Berlusconi has invited to run in the election here.