Roberto Maroni
Roberto Maroni | |
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President of Lombardy | |
Assumed office 27 February 2013 | |
Preceded by | Roberto Formigoni |
Federal Secretary of Lega Nord | |
In office 1 July 2012 – 7 December 2013 | |
Preceded by | Umberto Bossi |
Succeeded by | Matteo Salvini |
Minister of the Interior | |
In office 8 May 2008 – 16 November 2011 | |
Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
Preceded by | Giuliano Amato |
Succeeded by | Anna Maria Cancellieri |
In office 5 May 1994 – 17 January 1995 | |
Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
Preceded by | Nicola Mancino |
Succeeded by | Antonio Brancaccio |
Minister of Labour | |
In office 11 June 2001 – 17 May 2006 | |
Prime Minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
Preceded by | Cesare Salvi |
Succeeded by | Cesare Damiano |
Personal details | |
Born | Varese, Italy | 15 March 1955
Political party | Lega Nord (1991-present) |
Other political affiliations | Proletarian Democracy (1975-1979) Lega Lombarda (1984-1991) |
Alma mater | University of Milan |
Signature | ![]() |
Roberto Maroni (born 15 March 1955) is an Italian politician from Varese, current President of Lombardy since 2013. He is a leader of the Northern League (Italian: Lega Nord), a party seeking autonomy or independence for Northern Italy or Padania. Since 1992 to 2013 he was a Member of the Chamber of Duputies of the Italian Republic, always elected in Lombard constituencies. He was Interior Minister of the Italian Republic from 1994 to 1995 and from 2008 to 2011.
Career
In 1979, Maroni received a law degree with a dissertation in Civil Law, from the University of Milan. He became a lawyer after spending two years working as a Legal Affairs Manager for various companies.[1]
In 1990, he was elected Province Secretary of the Northern League in Varese. He also became a town councilor in Varese that year. Two years later, he was elected Chairman of the Northern League Parliamentary Group. He also entered the party's Federal Council and campaigned heavily for the Northern League prior to Berlusconi's first Cabinet.
He also served as Minister of the Interior during the first Silvio Berlusconi cabinet, from 1994 to 1995. He also served as Minister of Labour and Welfare from 2001 to May 2006 in Berlusconi's second and third cabinets.[1]
In April 2006, after Berlusconi narrowly lost his re-election bid to Romano Prodi, Maroni alleged problems with the election comparable to those in Florida during the 2000 Presidential election. "The level pegging is very similar to what happened in Florida. With one vote more or one vote less, you lose or you win," he said.[2]
After the 2008 electoral victory of the centre-right coalition in Italy, Maroni assumed the office of Minister of the Interior in the cabinet led by Silvio Berlusconi.
Following the forced retirement of Umberto Bossi due to his alleged involvement in a scandal, Maroni was elected Political Secretary of the Northern League at its Congress in Assago (on 30 June and 1 July 2012).[3] He currently leads a fierce opposition to Mario Monti's government with his party, the Northern League.[4] After the election of February 24, 2013, he became the ninth President of Lombardy.
Passion for music
In September 2006, Maroni told Vanity Fair that he downloads music illegally and thinks music should be "free and accessible to all".[5] He added that authors should still be able to stop their work from being widely distributed on the Internet. Maroni said his confession was intended to spark a discussion in Parliament about changing Italy's copyright laws, which are among the strictest in Europe.[5]
Maroni himself is also a musician, playing keyboards in the "Distretto 51" soul band from the 1980s.
Conviction
Maroni was convicted of resistance against a public official (by biting the arresting officer on the calf[citation needed]) during a police raid of his party's building in via Bellerio in Milan in 1996, and sentenced to 8 months (later changed into a fine), when police inspected his office.
References
- ^ a b [1][dead link]
- ^ "Prodi claims victory in Italy vote". China Daily. 11 April 2006. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
- ^ "Roberto Maroni new leader of Italy's Northern League". BBC. 2 July 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
- ^ "Viceministri, Monti al lavoro sulle nomine La Lega: "Dal governo solo nuove tasse"". Repubblica.it. 21 November 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
- ^ a b Warner, Bernhard (14 September 2006). "Right-winger sparks piracy debate". Variety. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
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