Ber ‧ lus ‧ co ‧ ni, Sil ‧ vi ‧ o /ˌbeəlʊˈskəʊni $ ˌbeər-, ˈsɪlviəʊ/ BrE AmE
(1936– ) an Italian ↑ businessman and ↑ right-wing politician. He owns a successful and powerful group of television companies, and he started a political party called Forza Italia. In 1994 the party won the elections and he became Prime Minister, but he was forced to leave this position in 1995 because he was charged with dishonest business dealings. In 1998 a court found him guilty of dishonestly offering money to tax officials. He was Prime Minister again from 2001 until 2006, and was elected to this position for a third time in 2008.