Berlusconi needs more than cosmetic surgery

[kskiska]

Looks like a lot of Smirk's buddies are falling by the wayside.

Facing a fractious coalition, public discontent and corporate scandal, Il Cavaliere's grip on Italy is looking shaky, writes Sophie Arie

He may have had a nip and tuck but how long can he stretch it out?

That is what some people are asking as a smiling Silvio Berlusconi once more hits the headlines with the latest update on his recent facelift. Newspapers revelled in the prime minister's comment on Thursday that his wife had "pushed him to reshape his face". The 67-year-old prime minister had cut meat, pasta and wine from his diet to lose 11 kilos (24 pounds), they reported.

"I like the way I look. I feel fine. I look in the mirror and I like what I see and I think I am more pleasing to others too," he told journalists on Wednesday. "I'm not finished yet, as you can see," he said, suggesting there was yet more facial remodelling to be done.

But if the prime minister's face ever stops drawing so much public attention, someone might notice that not everyone around him is smiling.

Mr Berlusconi is heading into the choppiest political waters since he took office in 2001.

His two closest allies, Umberto Bossi and Gianfranco Fini, are close to clawing each other's eyes out, putting the four-party governing coalition at risk. Mr Bossi, reforms minister and leader of the Northern League, fed up with sniping from Mr Fini, warned earlier this week that it was time "to start packing our bags".

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/elsewhere/journalist/story/0,7792,1134384,00.html