Schroder cancels Italy holiday

A furious Chancellor Gerhard Schroder of Germany today cancelled his summer holiday in Italy as relations between the two countries plunged to a new low.

The chancellor decided to stay home after a senior Italian official attacked German tourists as "stuck up, noisy, uniform, hypernationalistic blonds".

The attack from Stefano Stefani, an under-secretary in Italy's tourism ministry, sparked outrage in Germany. Mr Schroder's spokesman called Mr Stefani's remarks "unbelievable" and "an insult to all Germans who like to spend their vacations in Italy".

The row came hot on the heels of the bust-up last week when Italy's prime minister Silvio Berlusconi likened a German Euro MP to a concentration camp guard.

Today Mr Schroder, who branded Mr Berlusconi's comments "wholly unacceptable" had clearly had enough. His spokesman said he had decided the ructions would make it difficult for his family to spend a restful holiday on the Amalfi coast.

This afternoon there were suggestions Mr Schroder's decision could trigger a nationwide boycott at a heavy cost to Italy. Ten million visitors a year spend £5 billion there.

The spat also threatens to intensify hostility between the EU partners less than a fortnight after Italy took over the European presidency for six months.

One German newspaper accused Mr Stefani of having "spaghetti for brains" and as a German travel industry commented "let's see how they like their beaches empty".