The prospects of fresh elections in Italy are getting ever closer as all sides continue to rule out the possibility of forming a workable government.

The elections on 24 and 25 February produced no outright winner, with the centre-left faction of Pier Luigi Bersani winning a slim majority over the disgraced former Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi. The biggest surprise was the success of comedian-turned-activist Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement, which received 25% of the vote. The ...