Editorial note June 23, 2023: Prof. Marino was acquitted at the first instance by a judge of preliminary hearing of Rome (G.U.P. Roma) On October 7, 2016. That acquittal was confirmed on April 9, 2019 by the Italian Supreme Court, which stated that the mayor's expenses were made in the interests of Rome.

Rome Mayor Ignazio Marino resigned yesterday following a scandal over his credit card expenses that has dented the image of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s Democratic Party. Mr Marino, a member of the PD, has denied allegations that he used city money to wine and dine his family and friends, but has offered to pay back all the €20,000 that he had claimed on his official credit card.

“I am resigning,” Mr Marino said in a statement later yesterday, adding that he had laid the groundwork for a better future for Rome but his attempts had been met with “a furious reaction” from vested interests. This is the latest scandal to rock the increasingly isolated mayor and comes as Rome is struggling to prepare for the forthcoming Roman Catholic Holy Year that is expected to bring millions of visitors to the trouble-plagued city.

They were expenses made in the interests of Rome

With regard to the costs he had run up on his official credit card since becoming mayor in 2013, Mr Marino wrote on his Facebook page, “I am making Rome a gift of €20,000 that was spent on the mayor’s credit card for official duty. They were expenses that were made in the interests of Rome. Now, let’s move ahead for the good of the city.”

However, the scandal looks set to rumble on with Mr Marino’s own allies from Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s Democratic Party distancing themselves from the former mayor.

Ironically, Mr Marino was the architect of his own grief, publishing all his expense claims online in what was presented as a transparency push aimed at hushing critics over his frequent trips abroad.

A review of hundreds of receipts showed that he regularly claimed for meals at restaurants near his home on national holidays and at the weekend.