Berlusconi under fire for state TV appointment

The Italian Parliament blocked a move by the government yesterday to name one of its allies as chairman of powerful state broadcaster RAI, dealing a blow to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his coalition.

The Treasury announced earlier in the day that it was nominating Andrea Monorchio, a former state auditor close to one of the coalition parties, to the prestigious post of chairman of RAI, Italy's largest media organisation.

The decision drew swift accusations of bias from the opposition and hours later a parliamentary committee that oversees RAI voted by 20-12 against the candidature, making it difficult for the government to push ahead with the nomination.

"To put his name forward for this job is a provocation by Berlusconi," left-wing lawmaker Giuseppe Giulietti said. "Not least because we find ourselves approaching a general election next year."

At least five members of the ruling centre-right coalition voted against Mr Monorchio's nomination in the parliamentary committee, underlining the long-standing tensions within the government over access to the media. Since its founding after World War II, RAI appointments have always been political and the network has never had the independence of some state broadcasters like Britain's BBC.

But since Mr Berlusconi's coalition romped to power in 2001, RAI's autonomy has been an increasingly hot political issue. The previous chairman quit over a year ago saying the network had become a "mail box" for requests from the Prime Minister.

Mr Berlusconi, Italy's richest man, indirectly controls the state network through his political office, while Italy's leading private broacaster Mediaset is part of his business empire. The media tycoon politician has oversight over six of Italy's seven national television channels.