Italian PM left homeless as child after accidental blaze

Giorgia Meloni reveals ‘pain’ of father’s absence in memoir

- ALEXANDER BUTLER

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni has revealed she accidentally burnt her house down as a child and was left homeless.

Ms Meloni, 48, recalled building a makeshift fort with her older sister and lighting a candle inside it before a blaze destroyed her home.

“Opening the door, we were nearly engulfed by flames. There it was: a panda burning along with all our toys,” she said in her memoir I am Giorgia: My Roots, My Principles. “The fire consumed the entire apartment. We fled with nothing but a single bag hastily packed with pyjamas, two pairs of pants and a T-shirt.”