Political novice confirmed as Italy's next prime minister

A little-known academic was confirmed as Italy’s new prime minister last night as an avowedly anti-euro banker was tipped to become his economy minister.

Giuseppe Conte was appointed the country’s next leader despite accusations that he had inflated his curriculum vitae, with doubts arising over the reliability of his claims that he had studied or taught at the Sorbonne, the University of Malta and New York University.

The 53-year-old law professor was appointed by Sergio Mattarella, Italy’s president, after a two-hour meeting at the presidential Quirinal Palace in Rome.

In a brief address, he promised “a government of change” but acknowledged that Italy was going through a “delicate” time of great challenges.

Prof Conte has no political experience but was chosen as a compromise candidate by the hard-Right League party and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, who will now form Western Europe’s first populist, Eurosceptic government.

There is intense speculation that the new economy minister could be Paolo Savona, an 81-year-old economist, banker and one-time minister who has called Italy’s adoption of the euro a “historic error”.

In a book to be published this week, Mr Savona calls for a “plan B” to be drawn up to allow Italy to leave the Eurozone with as little damage as possible if that should prove necessary.

He has accused Germany of trying to dominate Europe economically, having failed to do so with military means during the Second World War.

If made economy minister, his appointment would be likely to alarm Berlin and further unnerve the financial markets, which are already worried about the coalition’s plans to go on a multi-billion pound spending spree through tax cuts and increased social welfare payments.

Italy is the second most heavily indebted country in the Eurozone, after Greece.

If the coalition sticks to its promises and flouts strict EU-imposed spending rules, it would likely provoke a bruising showdown with Brussels.

The prospect of Mr Savona taking the reins at the economy ministry has reportedly unsettled President Mattarella, who ultimately has a veto over ministerial appointments.

But any attempt to block Mr Savona’s appointment would be fiercely resisted by Matteo Salvini, the head of the The League, who is equally hostile to the euro.

"He is an economist respected in the whole world ... but what has he done wrong? He has dared to say that the EU as it stands is not working properly," Mr Salvini wrote on Facebook.

The European Commission warned on Wednesday that turbulence in Italy could endanger the entire Eurozone.

"Given its systemic importance, Italy is a source of potentially significant spillovers to the rest of the euro area," the EU executive said in an annual set of economic policy recommendations.

Prof Conte, who teaches law at universities in Rome and Florence, weathered accusations that he had padded his 12-page CV with academic credentials from universities where he was never formally enrolled.

The Five Star Movement refuted claims that Mr Conte had embellished his CV, insisting that there were no inconsistencies on the resume.