AN ITALIAN far-right political party is offering parents 1,500 (£1,275) if they name their children after Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini or his wife Rachele.
The Movimento Sociale-Fiamma Tricolore (MS-FT) said the offer was open to residents in five council areas where the population is dwindling.
Italians are already being offered 1,000 if they have a child by the current centre right government led
by Silvio Berlusconi, in an effort to lift the falling birth rate.
MS-FT said its 1,500 must be used for cots, clothes, food or other products specifically made for newborns and that spot checks would be carried out.
The five councils are in the south of Italy in the province of Potenza, an area suffering from chronic economic depression.
Vicenzo Mancusi, regional president of the MS-FT, said: "The initiative does not resolve the problem of the declining population, but it is a small attempt by a small party."
When asked why those names in particular had been chosen he said: "It is purely casual. They're nice names."
The name Benito – which comes from the Latin Benedictus and which means "to speak well" – is rarely used in Italy these days because of its connections to Mussolini.
The small party's name is a reference to the post-war Movimento Sociale Italiana neofascist party – which, in turn, was named after Mussolini's Repubblica Sociale Italiana, created with Nazi support in northern Italy, after he was toppled from power.
Fiamma Tricolore refers to the party's symbol of the green, white and red flame representing the Italian flag's colours.
Currently, they have no MPs in the Italian parliament, but they do have an MEP.
