Italy threat over migrants in Sicily

ITALY last night threatened to pull the plug on EU contributions if the bloc does not step in to distribute 150 migrants being held on a coastguard vessel in Sicily.

A row on their final destination led to a meeting between diplomats today who will discuss asylum policy. Yesterday, Italy’s deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio said: ‘If nothing comes out of a meeting on redistributing migrants I will not be willing to give 20 billion euros each year to the EU.’

ANGELA Merkel is reportedly plotting to tighten Berlin’s grip on Brussels by installing one of her countrymen as EU Commission president, a post that is up for grabs in November next year.