Boris is a saint compared to ‘Bunga Bunga’ Berlusconi

It was only a matter of time before someone really twisted the knife in and compared Boris ‘partygate’ Johnson to Silvio ‘Bunga Bunga’ Berlusconi. Rory Stewart, who is now an ex Tory and was rejected in the leadership contest won by Boris, has done just that. The British Prime Minister’s sins, he claims, make Britain feel like ‘Berlusconi’s Italy’.

Sorry Rory: no they don’t. The truth is that compared to Berlusconi, Boris is as pure as the driven snow. Yes, BoJo may once have invented a quote in an article for the Times, and he is all too often economical with the actualité on money and much else besides. But he has never been charged, let alone convicted, of a criminal offence, as far as we know.

Il Cavaliere (The Knight), as his supporters call him, on the other hand, is a completely different kettle of fish. The media tycoon and three-time Italian prime minister has been under near constant investigation, or on trial, for nearly three decades for, among other things: abuse of office, bribery and corruption of police officers, judges and witnesses, connections to the Mafia, embezzlement, extortion, false accounting, money laundering, perjury, tax fraud, and underage prostitution.