Roberto Maroni

Roberto Ernesto Maroni (Italian pronunciation: [roˈbɛrto maˈroːni]; born 15 March 1955) is an Italian politician from Varese, former President of Lombardy. He was leader of the Northern League, a party seeking autonomy or independence for Northern Italy or Padania. From 1992–2013 he was a Member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Republic, always elected in Lombard constituencies. He was Interior Minister of the Italian Republic from 1994–95, and from 2008–11.

Roberto Maroni
President of Lombardy
In office 18 March 2013 – 26 March 2018
Preceded by	Roberto Formigoni
Succeeded by	Attilio Fontana
Federal Secretary of Northern League
In office 1 July 2012 – 15 December 2013
Preceded by	Umberto Bossi
Succeeded by	Matteo Salvini
Minister of the Interior
In office 8 May 2008 – 16 November 2011
Prime Minister	Silvio Berlusconi
Preceded by	Giuliano Amato
Succeeded by	Anna Maria Cancellieri
In office 10 May 1994 – 17 January 1995
Prime Minister	Silvio Berlusconi
Preceded by	Nicola Mancino
Succeeded by	Antonio Brancaccio
Minister of Labour
In office 11 June 2001 – 17 May 2006
Prime Minister	Silvio Berlusconi
Preceded by	Cesare Salvi
Succeeded by	Cesare Damiano
Deputy Prime Minister of Italy
In office 11 May 1994 – 17 January 1995 Serving with Giuseppe Tatarella
Prime Minister	Silvio Berlusconi
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office 23 April 1992 – 14 March 2013
Constituency	Lombardy
Personal details
Born	Roberto Ernesto Maroni (1955-03-15) 15 March 1955 Varese, Italy
Political party	Northern League
Spouse(s)	Emilia Macchi
Children	3
Alma mater	University of Milan
Signature

Career

In 1979, Maroni received a law degree with a dissertation in Civil Law, from the University of Milan. He became a lawyer after spending two years working as a Legal Affairs Manager for various companies.[1]

In 1990, he was elected Province Secretary of the Northern League in Varese. He also became a town councilor in Varese that year. Two years later, he was elected Chairman of the Northern League Parliamentary Group. He also entered the party's Federal Council and campaigned heavily for the Northern League prior to Berlusconi's first Cabinet.

He also served as Minister of the Interior during the first Silvio Berlusconi cabinet, from 1994 to 1995. He also served as Minister of Labour and Welfare from 2001 to May 2006 in Berlusconi's second and third cabinets.[1]

In April 2006, after Berlusconi narrowly lost his re-election bid to Romano Prodi, Maroni alleged problems with the election comparable to those in Florida during the 2000 Presidential election. "The level pegging is very similar to what happened in Florida. With one vote more or one vote less, you lose or you win," he said.[2]

After the 2008 electoral victory of the centre-right coalition in Italy, Maroni assumed the office of Minister of the Interior in the Berlusconi IV Cabinet.

Following the forced retirement of Umberto Bossi due to his alleged involvement in a scandal, Maroni was elected Political Secretary of the Northern League at its Congress in Assago (on 30 June and 1 July 2012).[3] After the election on 24 February 2013, he became the ninth President of Lombardy.

Passion for music

In September 2006, Maroni told Vanity Fair that he downloads music illegally and thinks music should be "free and accessible to all".[4] He added that authors should still be able to stop their work from being widely distributed on the Internet. Maroni said his confession was intended to spark a discussion in Parliament about changing Italy's copyright laws, which are among the strictest in Europe.[4]

Basic income

On 12 May 2015, Maroni announced that his executive intends to introduce a basic income, as a pilot project, "to ensure all families in the region have enough money to be able to pay for basic necessities". He also said that the plan was to use 220 million euros from the European Social Fund (ESF) for the initiative.[5]

Terrorism

Shortly after the 2016 Normandy church attack, Maroni called on the Pope to "immediately proclaim" Jacques Hamel "St Jacques."[6]

References

1. Archived 11 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
2. "Prodi claims victory in Italy vote". China Daily. 11 April 2006. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
3. "Roberto Maroni new leader of Italy's Northern League". BBC. 2 July 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
4. Warner, Bernhard (14 September 2006). "Right-winger sparks piracy debate". Variety. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
5. Lombardy to experiment basic income, says Maroni, ansa.it; accessed 29 June 2015.(in Italian)
6. "One person detained in Normandy church attack investigation. An Italian politician is urging Pope Francis to put the slain French priest, Fr Jacques Hamel, on a fast track to sainthood". The Catholic Herald. 26 July 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2016.