Conte drops govt bid

(ANSA) - Rome, May 27 - Premier designate Giuseppe Conte has handed back a mandate to form a new government to President Sergio Mattarella, the president office said on Sunday. Law professor Conte's drive to form a government backed by the 5-Star Movement and the League appears to have run aground due to Mattarella's reported 'veto' of the nomination of Paolo Savona as economy minister.
    The appointment of economist Savona, a former industry minister who has expressed Euroskeptic positions in the past, seems to be a deal breaker for League leader Matteo Salvini. Senior members of the M5S are angry about developments, sources said. The sources said that it is the "biggest fake new in history" that Savona has called for Italy to quit the euro. "I want a different Europe, one that is stronger but fairer," Savona said in a statement on Sunday. "Wild controversy has been made out of my ideas. I believe in European political union".