The International Olympic Committee said Thursday that youth athletes with Russian or Belarusian passports should be allowed to compete under their national flag and anthem, easing restrictions on Russian athletes that have been in place since the country’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The updated position applies to the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal, but it did not mention the Milan Cortina Winter Games next year, where Russian athletes are expected to compete as neutral competitors under stringent regulations. “With its considerations today, the Olympic Summit recognised that athletes, and in particular youth athletes, should not be held accountable for the actions of their governments — sport is their access to hope, and a way to show that all athletes can respect the same rules and each another,” the IOC said in a statement. Still, the IOC maintained its guidance that Russia should not be allowed to host international sports events, although it said events could be hosted in Belarus. It also reiterated that restrictions on government officials from Russia and Belarus should stay in place for both youth and adult sports events. Russia has long faced scrutiny from the IOC over allegations of doping, with a number of Russian athletes who competed in the 2014 Sochi Olympics being stripped of their medals. IOC President Kirsty Coventry, who took the helm of the organization in June, has signaled that she would be open to seeing Russia compete in the 2026 Olympic Games, sparking a fierce backlash from Ukraine. The decision came out of this week’s Olympic Summit in Switzerland, at which key stakeholders decided to take up a recommendation from the committee’s Executive Board to change its guidance for Russian youth athletes. In its statement, the IOC said, “The Summit also reaffirmed that athletes have a fundamental right to access sport across the world, and to compete free from political interference or pressure from governmental organisations.” European soccer governing body UEFA attempted to allow Russian youth to participate in its competitions in 2023 but ultimately scuttled the effort following opposition from countries including Ukraine.

FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL GOVERNMENT PUSHED FOR THE SURPRISE EVICTION DESPITE ONGOING TALKS WITH MUNICIPALITY ~ Cristina Sykes ~ Police in Milan, Italy this morning (21 August) evicted the Leoncavallo occupied social centre, one of the most longstanding spaces of the Italian autonomous left. Hundreds of police officers in riot gear participated in the eviction and entire streets were blocked in the surrounding neighbourhood. The centre—a space for music, art, culture, and political organising and debate—had been located on Via Leoncavallo since 1975, and since 1994 on Via Watteu. “I am saddened”, said local poet Olmo Losca in a Facebook post, describing the centre as “a place that offered many people different moments of coming-together, always open to migrants and vulnerable people, the unemployed, the families destroyed by poverty”. Sources close to the centre attribute the eviction to political antagonism on part of Italy’s far-right government—particularly Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, a civil servant allied with the Northern League, and neo-fascist Senate president Ignacio La Russa, a resident of Milan. Prime Minister Georgia Meloni spoke approvingly of the eviction on national media. Earlier this year, an Italian court ruled that either the social centre or the ministry should pay compensation of 3 million Euro to the owners of the real-estate on which the centre was located. However, activists had been given assurances no action would be taken until 9 September. The early morning, midsummer timing of the eviction is thought to have been chosen due to the expectation of little resistance. The surprise eviction is said to have blindsided the municipality as well as the activists, with the mayor of Milan having offered an alternative location for the centre—albeit on what activists claim is toxic land. “The country’s real problems lie elsewhere, but they prefer to target symbolic spaces and fuel the idea of a single-track mindset”, said activist Alex C. “Because it’s not just the closure of a place: it’s the loss of opportunity, of choice, of awareness that something ‘other’ can exist beyond what TV and the system impose”. Supporters of the centre have called for a public assembly this evening at via Watteu. “We feel pain and rage”, said Marina Boer, spokesperson of the Leoncavallo mothers’ association. “This feeling confirms how good our ideas are. The Leoncavallo can’t end up like this. We will find a way forward, because the city needs cultural spaces. It can’t just be a desert of skyscrapers”. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Photos: milanoinmovimento on Instagram The post Italy: Eviction of historic Leoncavallo social centre in Milan appeared first on Freedom News.

MILAN — On a Friday morning under the boiling Lombard sun, the old men of Italian banking descended on the country’s financial capital to bask in their industry’s astonishing recent run of success. But the avuncular embraces over sugared breakfast treats gave way to nervous gossiping when the time came to discuss — sotto voce — the latest twists and turns in a high-stakes game of ‘Risk’ that continues to convulse this tight-knit family of financial elites — and now threatens a protracted conflict between Brussels and Rome. Over the past six months, the Italian banking sector has been consumed by a convoluted series of bids and counter-bids involving almost every major player in the country. Recently, the drama has veered toward a climactic denouement as a seemingly heavy-handed response from Rome toward one takeover bid in particular set off a conflagration between the Italian government and the European Commission, exposing their contradictory visions for Europe’s financial future. It began last year, when Milanese banking giant UniCredit angered Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government by attempting to take over crosstown rival BPM, which Meloni had hoped to merge with the partially bailed-out Tuscan lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena. In response, Rome deployed screening tools known as the ‘golden power’ — whose purpose is to prevent malicious foreign investment — to impose tough conditions on the bid, which UniCredit claims has effectively blocked it, prompting a court battle that unfolded earlier this week. But more broadly, Rome’s strong-arming has also come into conflict with the grand industrial vision of the Commission, which has placed consolidating Europe’s still-fragmented banking market at the center of Europe’s new — and what it describes as an increasingly urgent — competitiveness drive. Commission officials are readying a warning to the Italian government on its misuse of golden power to hamper UniCredit’s bid for BPM. At the annual assembly of the Association of Italian Banks (ABI) on Thursday, those tensions played out in real-time between financial officials and their industry counterparts — albeit in muted form. On the surface, it was more like an infrequent gathering of a fractious family that wants to keep up appearances over festivities, and there was no explicit mention of the drama in public comments. But on the industry and regulatory side, the speeches contained barely concealed paeans to free-market capitalism and the virtue of unmolested free markets. ABI Chairman Antonio Patuelli, a spry veteran of the scene, emphasized the importance of advancing the European banking union, calling for “common rules for corporate governance, markets, savings and investment.” In a conspicuous swipe at the Italian government — and its controversial alignment with construction billionaire Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone — he added that “competition must always be developed and safeguarded,” and that banks and “non-traditional financial actors … must be subject to the same rules.” But Italian officials painted a different picture, arguing that the EU and those sympathetic to its supranational vision of European industry misunderstand what Italy is doing. The government has already signaled in a recent court hearing that it will fight its doubters to the last, even through the European Court of Justice. Speaking to POLITICO, one Treasury official said Rome’s interventions into UniCredit’s adventures were a genuine matter of national security, as important as boosting defense spending. But as Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told the ABI attendees, the banks’ pronounced growth has come at the expense of much of their regional character. | Riccardo Antimiani/EPA To him, it’s the EU being heavy-handed, not Rome. “The Italian people elected a sovereigntist government, why are people surprised when we do sovereigntist things?” the person said. Much of the concern over UniCredit’s move stems from broader discontent in Italy over the way its banks have failed to translate whopping gains into tangible benefits for average Italians. After teetering on the edge of cataclysm during the global financial crisis, Italian banks pulled off a dramatic turnaround, bolstering their capital and reducing their holdings of bad debt. But as Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told the ABI attendees, the banks’ pronounced growth has come at the expense of much of their regional character. “The organizational, income and capital strengthening of Italian banks over the last 15 years has not always translated into more favorable credit conditions but rather into a reduction in lending to businesses,” he said. He highlighted that the “exceptional returns” to shareholders — with UniCredit hitting record profits in the first quarter of 2025 thanks to a major boost from high interest rates — “were made possible thanks to public guarantees… So it is legitimate to ask whether we’re witnessing an excess of ‘financialization.'” There are good reasons for the government to be concerned. Italy, which after Greece has the highest debt in the EU as a proportion of GDP,  is sensitive to large moves involving holders of its sovereign debt. Meanwhile, the country’s countless small and medium-sized enterprises, which make up a major part of the government’s electoral base, are reliant on the kind of easy credit access that BPM — a bank with strong ties to Northern Italy — might be less inclined to give if subsumed into the more international UniCredit. To others, Europe’s ambition to rival the United States on the financial stage might run counter to the more narrow interests of Rome and — more importantly — the Italian people. “The European Union doesn’t understand,” said one Italian regulatory official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We’re dwarves, and we’ll never seriously compete with the U.S.” Giorgetti himself said much the same, calling on the nation’s banks to “focus as much as possible on doing their part: going back to being banks.” Francesca Micheletti contributed to this report.

The highly politicized tussle over Italy’s financial system took another twist on Monday as Milan-based Mediobanca struck back against a government-backed bid from Monte dei Paschi di Siena. The investment bank, which has played kingmaker and all-round power broker in countless Italian corporate battles, said on Monday it wants to acquire the banking arm of insurer Assicurazioni Generali to create an “Italian champion” in wealth management, using its current 13.1 percent stake in Generali to finance the acquisition. The proposal values Banca Generali at €6.3 billion, some 6 percent more than its closing price on Friday in Milan. In a nod to Rome, where the government has expressed concern about increasing foreign influence in the financial sector, Mediobanca said it would create an “Italian champion” in wealth management. Mediobanca is itself currently the subject of a hostile bid from Monte dei Paschi di Siena that enjoys the support of influential figures in the right-wing government in Rome. The government has indicated it wants to build MPS, which is still partly state-owned, into a force capable of competing with the country‘s two biggest banking groups, Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit. Mediobanca CEO Alberto Nagel told reporters in a press conference on Monday he views its alternative vision as “much more valid” from a strategic perspective than MPS’s bid. Mediobanca’s move will need approval from the Italian government under its “golden power” rules, (which are typically used to screen foreign investment), Nagel told reporters. However, he argued that there should be no problems on this score, as it would create “a national leader in asset management,” which is “exactly” what Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been advocating for. Mediobanca said it expects the deal to close as soon as October. The developments come barely a week after Rome used its ‘golden power’ to obstruct UniCredit’s planned takeover of Milan-based Banco BPM, which some in government would reportedly prefer to see merged with MPS. UniCredit said last week that the conditions imposed by the government made it impossible to proceed with its bid at present. The procedure has caught the eye of the European Commission, which has asked Rome for clarifications on how it used the tool. The deal would also give Assicurazioni Generali control over a large block of its own stock, making it more difficult for minority shareholders to dislodge its current management. Generali’s CEO Philippe Donnet defeated a motion to depose him at the company’s shareholder meeting last week, brought by the holding companies of two of Italy’s richest families. Donnet, a Frenchman, is currently forcing through a merger with the asset management arm of French group Natixis, a move that Rome fears will dilute its informal influence over one of the biggest holders of Italian government debt. Governments everywhere are anxious to keep as much control over the markets in which they borrow, conscious that decades of deficits have raised doubts over their ability to ever pay back their debts.

Just a year after Paris hosted the Summer Olympics, Europe is already jockeying to bring the world’s premier sporting jamboree back to the continent as soon as possible. European Sport Commissioner Glenn Micallef told POLITICO he wanted to see “the Olympic flame being lit again on EU territory at the soonest opportunity.” “The Paris Olympics and Paralympic Games 2024 proved that such a spectacle can be both economically viable and promote shared values and sustainability,” he said. “And to see the European Union visibly present for the first time was tremendous,” Micallef added. The EU’s circle of stars was flown at the Games alongside the Olympic flag for the first time last year. With the upcoming Summer Olympics to be held in Los Angeles in 2028, followed by Brisbane in 2032, the earliest Europe could host the Summer Games is 2036 — though Milan will host the Winter Games in 2026. London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan told The Times in an interview published Monday that he wanted the British capital to be “the sporting capital of the world” and would be keen to explore a bid to host the Games in 2040. London last staged the Olympics in 2012, meaning it already has the necessary infrastructure and could be “the greenest Games ever,” Khan added. It’s unlikely that the International Olympic Committee, which organizes Olympic events, would be in favor of Europe hosting two consecutive Olympic Games, however. Meanwhile, incoming German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has also committed to supporting a bid to bring the Olympics back to Germany, according to Volker Bouffier, the former minister-president of Hessen who now serves on the board of the German Olympic Sports Confederation, or DOSB. Bouffier told Sport Bild on Friday that he personally asked Merz to support a German bid to host the Olympics in 2036, 2040 or 2044, to which Merz responded that Bouffier could “rely on” him. The DOSB has not yet selected a city to represent Germany in a bid. The last time the country hosted the Summer Olympics was in 1972, in Munich. Isabel Díaz Ayuso, the president of the Madrid region, last year called for the Spanish capital to host the Games and said the region was “working on” a bid. A Spanish business association, the Madrid Business Forum, backed that proposal this week. The host city for 2036 has yet to be determined, though Istanbul, Santiago, and Nusantara — the planned new capital of Indonesia — have all signaled interest. The IOC has no timeline for selecting the 2036 or 2040 host cities.

MILAN — The first thing that greets new arrivals to Italy’s financial capital is a huge, curved skyscraper that looms alone over a windswept square. Plastered across its facade is a broad red banner bearing a single word: Generali. While little known outside Italy, Assicurazioni Generali, an insurer dating back to 19th-century Trieste, is at the center of a breathtaking and complex web of intrigue, political power plays, billionaires — and, most crucially, €35.6 billion of Italian sovereign debt. On April 24, major Generali shareholders representing a who’s who of Italian political and financial might — including two billionaire dynasties, three major banks and proxies for the government in Rome — fought a pitched battle over the future of the insurer’s board, including its chief executive, Frenchman Philippe Donnet, for another three-year term. In the end, Donnet survived — but Thursday’s meeting was only the first play in a longer, highly politicized struggle for influence. For years, the Italian government has chafed over the direction Donnet has taken at the prized firm, which is Europe’s third-largest insurer and the third-largest company in Italy. Last year, that frustration became a full-blown panic after Donnet began plans to merge Generali’s asset management arm (and its vast holdings of Italian sovereign debt) with that of a French firm. The government is wary that French influence over the insurer could reduce its “patriotic commitment” to investing in Italy, at a time when Italy’s debt pile is under increasing scrutiny. But the government doesn’t have direct influence over the company — and that’s where much of the drama of the meeting came in. On the face of it, there are two major power brokers in this game, each striving to influence the breakdown of the insurer’s board. In favor of Donnet is Mediobanca, the revered Milan investment bank that owns a 13.1 percent share in Generali and which ultimately secured 52 percent of the vote for its list of candidates Thursday. On the other side are the billionaire and powerful Rome construction tycoon Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, and Delfin, a holding company controlled by the family of late billionaire Leonardo Del Vecchio. Together they hold a 17 percent stake in the insurer, and on Thursday they sought to impose six of their candidates on its board — the idea being to marginalize Donnet. While last week’s bid largely failed, the two billionaire families have another trick up their sleeves. The investors share their skepticism of Donnet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and are alleged to be key players in a separate, Rome-backed move to take over Mediobanca outright through the partly nationalized Tuscan lender Monte dei Paschi di Siena, in which both Caltagirone and Delfin bought a small stake last year. A successful takeover would extinguish Mediobanca’s influence completely. That all means that the stakes are extraordinarily high: Should Mediobanca resist the pressure from Rome, it will be a triumph for the financial markets and a blow to the government’s efforts to involve itself in a wave of banking consolidation that continues to sweep the country. Should Caltagirone and Delfin get their way, it could end a nasty period of unease over the future of billions of euros of Italian savings — but also underscore a sense of government overreach that even Brussels is starting to notice. In favor of Donnet is Mediobanca, the revered Milan investment bank that owns a 13.1 percent share in Generali. | Filippo Monteforte/Getty Images “There’s a complete dissonance between domestic investors and international investors,” said Francesco Galietti, a former Treasury official and the founder of political risk consultancy Policy Sonar, who noted that Italian investors primarily voted for the government position, while U.S. investors supported Mediobanca. “The international investors tend to look at market criteria, dividends performance, while the Italians tend to be very political.” ‘COLD WAR’ The high-finance bloodletting has also attracted the gaze of bigger, deadlier predators. Looking on from the sidelines are Italy’s two largest banks, UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo, which have made small but significant moves to weigh in on the current battle and are seen as potential kingmakers. In February, Milan-based UniCredit was revealed to have bought a 5 percent stake in Generali. The lender said the move was purely financial, but the bank’s move to vote in favor of Caltagirone’s list on Thursday prompted speculation that it was looking to appease Rome after the government imposed tough conditions on a separate takeover bid that the bank is pursuing. Taking a more cautious approach is Intesa Sanpaolo. The Turin-based lender, Italy’s largest, had planned to take over Generali in 2017, but gave up the bid after it was leaked by Italian media. Stung, the bank retreated from the idea, instead pursuing several bank takeovers in 2019. But with Generali’s future now an open question, observers suggest Intesa won’t be able to resist jumping back into the fray. If UniCredit were to make a serious bid for Generali, or even significantly up its stake, Intesa may feel forced to make a counterbid in order to prevent its rival swallowing up the gargantuan insurer. To be sure, neither bank has publicly signaled any interest in buying the insurer, and it’s not clear either could. Instead, what is likely to unfold is a “cold war” between the powerful institutions as they try to prevent others from influencing it, said one Italian banking executive close to the Generali drama. Depending on how that plays out, their involvement could derail the carefully laid strategies of either Mediobanca or Rome. “When Rome started this they were thinking about Mediobanca, not about Intesa and UniCredit,” the Italian executive added. “They weren’t thinking about [the] consequences of this game — but now Generali’s in play. It wasn’t the intention, but it was the conclusion of the game.” Carlo Martuscelli contributed to this report from Brussels. This article has been updated.

LONDON — A sleek, leather-clad procession of high-heeled, sunglass-toting fashion enthusiasts snaked around Leicester Square’s luxury hotel, The Londoner, awaiting entry to British designer Helen Anthony’s runway show.  While the faithful queued in style, B-list celebrities like Love Island’s Curtis Pritchard and reality TV star Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu coolly sidestepped the crowds, slipping out of an Addison Lee private car and straight into front-row seats. Inside, baristas scrambled to empty trays of pink tequila lemonades, as attendees were herded into a pink-tinted room filled with rows of seats.  Helen Anthony’s fall collection, the designer’s team informed POLITICO, was an ode to the twin personalities of Gemini, exploring the balance between nature and human creativity. Models strutted down the catwalk sporting gravity-defying wigs, sharp-shouldered twin-set blazers and short fur skirts, while latecomers in the back rows craned their necks for a glimpse of the season’s new aesthetic.  Yet beneath all the gloss, critics in the crowds pointed to the city’s waning fashion influence, and were already looking ahead to attend their next destination — Paris.  Paris Fashion Week kicked off on Monday. The grand finale of the “big four” fashion capitals, it caps a month-long circuit from New York to London to Milan and, finally, Paris. For fashion enthusiasts, the hierarchy is clear. “London is more like personal and niche brands, and Paris is more international, bigger brands,” blogger Elizabeth, who only gave us her first name, told POLITICO on the sidelines of the runway. “Both have their benefits. But yeah, of course, I prefer Paris.” From the Helen Anthony Autumn/Winter 2025 runway show. | Niko Emma Verdoian, a high jewelry specialist at Tiffany & Co., noted the shift. “When I was in Paris Fashion Week last year, it felt like the whole city was in it. Some London designers have chosen other cities to present their collections, just because there’s more exposure.” Texting in from New York, stylist Alissar Wynn, who has worked for brands like Louis Vuitton and Stella McCartney, said: “Post-Brexit, very few designers show there. If I wasn’t in the industry, I wouldn’t even be able to tell you when London Fashion Week was because I can’t say that it has a massive impact on the city or tourism. In Paris, you can’t even enter Hotel Costes, there are so many people there.” As major staples like Victoria Beckham and Vivienne Westwood opt to show in Paris, and the U.K. grapples with the fallout of scrapping tax-free shopping, critics point to Brexit’s lasting toll on the nation’s fashion industry. FOR FRANCE, BREXIT WAS A GIFT  “For France, Brexit was a gift,” said Fashion Roundtable CEO Tamara Cincik. “We gifted our prominence in terms of talent and profile, while a business-savvy French government saw an opportunity … all while inducing customers to shop there for their high-end purchases.” Less than a year after the Brexit referendum, French President Emmanuel Macron hosted a gala dinner to signal to fashion entrepreneurs that France was open for business. Designers including Jean Paul Gaultier, Virgil Abloh and Christian Louboutin rocked up to the Elysée Palace, eager to snap a picture with the maverick French leader.  “Choose France,” Macron said. “My deepest wish is that creators … will consider coming to our country, and that we get everything in order to make that work easy for them.” While Macron courted fashion entrepreneurs, the U.K. government did the opposite. Since 2021, international shoppers can no longer claim VAT refunds for purchases made in Britain, making shopping much more expensive relative to Paris. The British Fashion Council (BFC), the organization that runs London Fashion Week, has urged the government to restore tax-free shopping to “ensure competitive parity” with the country’s neighbors. In Q4 of 2023, retail spending in London’s West End slumped 15 percent, despite international visitor numbers being level with the same period in 2019, according to recent figures published by New West End Company. The widest spending gap is from affluent visitors from the Gulf, who are returning to the U.K. in greater numbers but spending far less — a major contrast to France. In Q4 2023, Gulf visitor spending in France surged 132 percent compared with 2019, while in the U.K., arrivals rose 39 percent, yet spending increased just 6 percent. Buyers and shoppers, particularly those attending the fashion week circuit, are choosing to spend in Paris over London. Caroline Rush, chief executive of BFC, explained: “It goes New York, London, Milan, Paris. So actually, when all the buyers have been and seen the shows, they’re then buying the product in Paris.” Caroline Rush is set to leave the British Fashion Council after 16 years supporting London Fashion Week. | Nic Forde She pointed to the consumer effect. “Quite often, a luxury consumer will come to London … then Paris. That luxury customer, when they’re here, might have a look at the shops. But if they’re going to be going to Paris and they can get that same product at a discount, they’ll just buy it in Paris.” International shoppers can also claim VAT relief if items purchased in the U.K. are directly sent to their home country as exports. Charles Taylor, a U.K.-based fashion concierge founder serving African clients, and owner of Inner Circle talent agency, said that this has majorly impacted the role of personal shoppers. “Harrods or Selfridges are able to offer a tax-free shopping service for clients if the item leaves the department store to their home address,” he said. “It’s not a great thing for us service-based external buyers, as there’s no more need for clients to contact us when they can contact stores with brands they can have access to.” LOSS OF TALENT AND FUNDING  Brexit has also cut off crucial funding for young designers. Charles Jeffrey, the creative director of fashion house Charles Jeffrey LOVERBOY, who showcased at Somerset House during London Fashion Week, said “leaving the European Union changed the British fashion landscape drastically,” particularly when it comes to funding. “Companies that once received funding from the ERDF [the European Development Fund] helped platforms like Centre For Fashion Enterprise, who supported incubator programs like Fashion East and NEWgen,” he said. “This gave these schemes support and the space to thrive, which is super important to kickstart and maintain brands.” One such emerging artist is Abigail Hodges, who launched her sustainable fashion brand, FOTU, from her bedroom during the pandemic. Hodges says the increased cost of importing her materials, which she sources from Greece, has made life even harder. From the Helen Anthony Autumn/Winter 2025 runway show. | Niko Hodges doesn’t outsource labor, which she views as increasingly difficult due to the complexities of cross-border living and clunky bureaucracy. “Everything is more expensive. Everything is way harder,” she explained. “Probably more and more fashion brands will be leaving the U.K. because it’s just so expensive to stay here.” For Hodges, London Fashion Week has become an unaffordable dream for many emerging designers. The cost of showcasing just a few looks at Fashion Week can easily exceed £7,000. “I’ve also been part of shows where other designers are showing for the first time. And normally, honestly, it ends up with them bankrupting themselves.” “You do the show and put everything into it. If you don’t have the correct PR around you and you don’t get picked up, you’re just left with no money to put into the next collection,” Hodges said. A CITY LOSING ITS THREAD Rush is set to leave the British Fashion Council after 16 years supporting London Fashion Week. “I have loved every minute of it,” she said. “But there comes a point where you need a new challenge.” As a member of the U.K. government’s Creative Industries Taskforce, which informs its Industrial Strategy, she continues to push for policy changes — including the reinstatement of tax-free shopping and funding for independent designers. Trade remains a major sticking point. With the U.K. locked in trade negotiations with India and Gulf states, and a scheduled review of the U.K.-EU trade agreement coming up next year, Rush is pushing for fashion to be properly considered in these talks. Anthony, the designer whose show was held at The Londoner, acknowledges that, “as a brand that uses British fabrics and keeps production local, [they’ve] been fortunate to avoid many of the logistical challenges others have faced post-Brexit.” Many others have not been so lucky. According to Retail Economics, British clothing exports fell by more than 60 percent, from £7.4 billion in 2019 to £2.7 billion in 2023. Smaller brands, in particular, have struggled due to a cocktail of Brexit-induced red tape, extra taxes on goods and complicated customs checks. While big brands can manage the extra paperwork, smaller businesses have chosen to stop selling to Europe altogether. Before stepping away from her role, POLITICO asked Rush about her favorite part of London Fashion Week. “The energy in that room is really spine-tingling,” she said. “They’re literally only 10 minutes long, but you have these bursts of energy and emotion that are expressed through incredible creativity and design.” As the last models exited the runway, and the final bursts of energy faded in London, the fashion elite were already preparing to board the Eurostar to Gare du Nord with the giddy sensation that the headline act was now about to begin.

ROME — Italy’s UniCredit said on Sunday it has built a stake of 4.1 percent in insurance and asset management giant Generali Group, adding another twist to a highly politicized battle over control of the country’s financial sector. The Milan-based bank said it also holds another 0.6 percent of Generali on behalf of clients and their related hedging activities. It said its holding is “a pure financial investment” that would not affect its balance sheet strength, and asserted that it has “no strategic interest in Generali.” However, its move adds an extra layer of complexity to an already confusing power struggle over Italy’s biggest banks and asset managers, in which the government of Giorgia Meloni appears to be pushing the creation of a “third pole” to rival UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo with the help of some sympathetic local billionaires. The government is keen to ensure that Generali, which last month agreed to combine its asset management business with that of France-based Natixis, keeps its appetite for Italian sovereign debt at a time when Rome needs to borrow nearly €1 billion a day. The Trieste-based conglomerate is the government’s largest private-sector creditor. Rome had initially pushed for an alliance between Banco BPM, a Milan-based lender, and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), which the government is still in the process of privatizing after years of restructuring. That intention was frustrated last year when UniCredit made a formal offer for all of BPM. UniCredit said on Sunday that it remains committed to that deal, and to developing its relationship with Germany’s Commerzbank. Rome is now throwing its support behind a bid by MPS for Mediobanca, a Milan-based merchant bank that has historically catered to some of the country’s biggest business empires. Mediobanca is also Generali’s biggest shareholder, with a 13.1 percent stake. Italian media have reported that the Del Vecchio and Caltagirone families, which hold just under 10 percent and 7 percent of Generali, respectively, want to increase their influence at the Trieste-based insurer. A person familiar with the matter said that while the purchase of a stake by UniCredit was not an explicit attempt to exert leverage in the billionaires’ tussle over Generali, it will have an “interesting” effect at a coming board meeting. The same person noted that UniCredit had started snapping up Generali shares before MPS’s move on Mediobanca. People familiar with the matter told POLITICO that UniCredit had built its stake via derivatives, gaining economic exposure to Generali without crossing a threshold for mandatory disclosure. UniCredit declined to comment to POLITICO on that. Geoffrey Smith contributed reporting.

ROME — Italy’s UniCredit has bought a stake in insurance giant Generali Group, according to two people familiar with the matter, adding another twist to a byzantine banking battle brewing in Italy’s north. Generali is in the crosshairs of several competing groups, including the Rome-allied billionaire Del Vecchio and Caltagirone families, as well as Milan-based investment bank Mediobanca. UniCredit is separately trying to take over Milan lender Banco BPM, in which both groups also own a stake. One of the people said that while the purchase of a stake by UniCredit was not an outright attempt to exert leverage over the billionaires’ bid for Generali, it will have an “interesting” effect at a coming board meeting. UniCredit’s purchase, which remains below 4 percent, was made via derivatives that allow the bank to be economically exposed to the asset without hitting the 10 percent threshold for mandatory disclosure, the two people said. The Milan bank began buying shares before its Tuscan rival, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, made a surprise bid for Mediobanca last month, one of the people added. Italian newspaper Sole24Ore reported earlier on UniCredit’s move. UniCredit declined to comment when contacted by POLITICO.

PARIS — Emmanuel Macron reckons he has found in Giorgia Meloni the perfect ally in his crusade against the European Union’s massive trade agreement with South America. But before the French president breaks open the Champagne to celebrate the demise of a deal he has fought against for years, he may be forced to realize that the Italian prime minister is playing a different game. After a quarter of a century of on-and-off-again negotiations, EU chief executive Ursula von der Leyen shook hands on Dec. 6 with leaders of the Mercosur bloc — which brings together Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay — on a free-trade accord that would create a common market of nearly 800 million people and account for a fifth of global gross domestic product. For years Italy, the EU’s second-biggest exporter to the region, quietly supported the agreement, which enjoys the backing of a corporate establishment that sees the chance to open up new markets. But, in recent weeks, leaders in Meloni’s right-wing government have started to question it, expressing concern that farmers could be hurt by cut-price food imports from South America. The Italian shift culminated just before von der Leyen’s Montevideo trip, with officials from Meloni’s office saying the conditions to sign the deal had not been met. The change of tone in Rome has been music to the ears of France, where the deal is hated by farmers along with politicians across the political spectrum who want to build an alliance to block it in a future EU vote. After lobbying the Italians for months to join the anti-deal camp, the French government has been quick to celebrate. Ministers trumpeted that France has found a new ally and, before that, Macron congratulated Meloni for making “a good move on Mercosur” at last month’s G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro. But France risks making a big mistake by counting Meloni as an ally. Officials with direct knowledge of the file and experts told POLITICO that Italy hasn’t yet made up its mind, and would be unlikely to oppose the deal when it eventually goes to a vote among EU member countries.  Meloni’s recent reservations mainly aim to keep the farm lobby quiet, they say, while pleasing her right-wing, trade-skeptic base. On top of that, the Italian premier has good strategic reasons to fuel ambiguity around Rome’s position as she stands to benefit from her status as the deal’s kingmaker in Brussels.  “She is playing wait and see and trying to keep a foot in both camps,” said Alberto Rizzi, a Rome-based policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations who assesses that the deal would be economically beneficial to Italy.  Even Italian foreign ministry officials and diplomats aren’t sure where Italy really stands on Mercosur, added Rizzi.  STRATEGIC AMBIGUITY  In Montevideo, von der Leyen celebrated the deal as the first political victory of her new term. But the agreement, which would remove tariffs on goods spanning from cars to beef, is loathed by European farmers, who fear that an import glut of cheap poultry and beef could undercut them.  A blocking minority of at least four countries representing at least 35 percent of the EU’s population could still veto the agreement in a vote that would happen after the final text of the deal has undergone legal checks and translation — a process that could take several months. Poland is so far the only big country France can count on to oppose the deal, while Ireland and Austria are also against it. To reach that critical threshold Paris would need another big ally — and Italy is the only candidate. One person with direct knowledge of the Italian position, who was granted anonymity as they are not authorized to speak on the record, stressed that, despite appearances, Rome and Paris aren’t exactly on the same page. Italy is ready to back the deal if it obtains concessions — a point that Meloni’s agriculture minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, made in Brussels last week. | Francesco Ruta/EPA-EFE While Paris still radically opposes the deal, Italy is ready to back it if it obtains concessions, such as stricter sanitary controls on imported products, as well as cash for farmers to ease the pain of South American competition. It’s a point that Meloni’s agriculture minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, made in Brussels last week. HOME FIXTURE Meloni’s posture on the Mercosur deal has more to do with domestic politics.  Powerful farmer lobby Coldiretti, which is close to the government and to Lollobrigida, strongly opposes the deal, which is backed by industry lobby Confindustria. The government is meanwhile fractured on this file. The foreign minister, who also holds the trade portfolio, is Antonio Tajani from center-right Forza Italia party. Tajani backs the deal, while Matteo Salvini of the League is against it. Meloni and the prime ministers who preceded her haven’t said much about the deal, which hasn’t attracted wide public attention. And they prefer to keep it that way. Ask a French person in the street about the EU-Mercosur deal, and they will likely respond with a list of arguments against it. It’s a different story in Italy, where the media and political bubbles only started talking about it a few weeks ago. Then there’s the national interest. “It would be a mistake for Italy to oppose this agreement,” said Antonella Mori, an economics professor at the Bocconi University in Milan and Latin America expert at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies. For Mori, Italy’s economic interests are more aligned with those of Germany, the deal’s No. 1 supporter, than those of France. Importantly, the automotive industry concentrated in the north of the country is tied to that of Germany, which itself is going through a slump and sees exports to the South American market as a potential source of salvation. “Italy, in the end, will vote in favor of the deal,” predicted Mori. Antonio Tajani from the center-right Forza Italia party backs the deal, while Matteo Salvini of the League is against it. | Clemens Bilan/EPA-EFE A study commissioned by the Italian foreign ministry in 2020 also concluded that, overall, the agreement would be beneficial to the Italian economy.  For Rizzi, the analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, Meloni could be playing a dangerous game, as joining the anti-Mercosur camp would undermine her relationship with von der Leyen.  On top of compensation for farmers in the medium term, some think Meloni might also be tempted to trade Italy’s support for the Mercosur deal with concessions on other files, as von der Leyen’s European Commission turns its attention to reviving Europe’s industrial competitiveness and turning around the bloc’s economic slide. “It would fit the great Italian tradition for her to try to maximize the return on investment on her vote by playing for time,” said an EU diplomat, who was granted anonymity to comment candidly about another country’s position. “Maybe she’s trying to see which side can offer her the most?” This story has been updated.