Deborah Bergamini, MP for Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right Forza Italia party which is part of Meloni’s coalition, says the forst woman to become Italy's prime minister has been “very good” at presenting herself as a “pragmatic, concrete” woman who is “ready to take responsibility for this country”.
“This has allowed her such an outcome,” Bergamini told the BBC’s Today Programme.
Asked if she has concerns about the party’s roots in Mussolini's facist movement, Bergamini says it is “stereotype that has nothing to do with Mussolini”.
“I find this comparison totally improper, inappropriate and far from the reality of the perception that Brothers of Italy and the centre right coalition have in this country,” she says.