Beppe Severgnini will discuss the current crisis in Italy, in his words: “Some people would say Italians are a lively, imaginative, charming lot, if not always reliable, the sort of description that fits children. If it’s true, as it might be, what do those lively children need? A good baby-sitter. Last year, at a difficult and stressful time, we turned to a German Fraülein (Angela Merkel) and sought domestic help from assorted Europeans and Americans (EU, ECB, IMF). We didn’t realize we had the perfect candidate at home, ready to step into action. The current Italian prime minister should be known as Mary(o) Poppins Monti, a magic nanny who came to work for an unhappy family. Good things started to happen. As Julie Andrews’s fans know, the lady was suave, but not soft. So is Mr Monti. His message to his fellow Italians was: “The party’s over. Get your act together”. Surprisingly, we said: “Fair enough”.”