An election campaign that promises to be chaotic and confusing even by Italian standards gets under way on Sunday when Mario Monti is expected to announce whether he will stand again as a candidate to be prime minister. The outgoing technocrat premier, who has implemented painful austerity measures during his 13 months in office, will hold a press conference that will be closely monitored by other contenders, including former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, with elections expected on 24 February. Both Berlusconi and centre-left candidate Pier Luigi Bersani – who currently leads the polls on 30% – have warned Monti ... (full story)