Alessandra Mussolini, an Italian member of the European Parliament (MEP), caused a storm last week when she described Romanians as "habitual lawbreakers" and called for the Romanian ambassador to Italy to be expelled. Her comments, reported in a Bucharest newspaper, led to five Romanian legislators leaving the ITS.
On Wednesday, Nov. 14, the MEPs from the Greater Romania party confirmed that they had quit, leaving the ITS with just 18 members, two less than the minimum needed for an official presence in the parliament.