Court confirms Prodi's victory

A top Italian court confirmed the slim electoral victory of centre-left leader Romano Prodi in the lower house of parliament, although premier Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative coalition was not conceding defeat.

The Court of Cassation, which is conducting a review of contested ballots from this month’s parliamentary election, said Prodi had won the lower house by about 24,000 votes – a margin virtually unchanged from the one previously announced.