Slideshow ( 2 images )

ROME (Reuters) - Italy’s former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi said on Tuesday he was ready to take part in the forthcoming European parliamentary election campaign, despite being admitted to hospital earlier in the day with kidney problems.

“I’m fit and ready for this election campaign,” Berlusconi wrote on Twitter.

The 82-year-old media tycoon is heading the ticket for his Forza Italia party in the May 26 EU vote, looking to revive the fortunes of the centre-right group, which has seen its once-junior political partner, the League, surge ahead of it in the opinion polls.