A former Miss Italia contestant is the only candidate from the entertainment world being fielded by Premier Silvio Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PDL) party in the European elections, the party said Wednesday.
27-year-old Barbara Matera from Puglia has worked as a presenter and showgirl for state broadcaster RAI and in over a dozen television programmes as well as acting in five TV series and a film.
Earlier in the day a row broke over media reports that Berlusconi planned to put a number of starlets up for election, with the premier's wife Veronica Lario joining in the criticism.
After the PDL list was announced, Berlusconi hit out again at his critics.
''Are all those gentlemen who mounted this campaign now going to shut up?'' he asked.
