As ex-topless model meets G8 wives, France’s first lady stays away

A former topless model was today joining Sarah Brown for tea with the Pope as the G8 summit of the world's leading nations began.

Mara Carfagna, now Italy's Equal Opportunities Minister, stepped in to act as "first lady" after the wife of Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi filed for divorce.

The 33-year-old was having an audience with Pope Benedict XVI with Sarah Brown before meeting Michelle Obama for lunch with the wife of the mayor of Rome, Isabella Rauti — whose father Pino is a former leading figure on the far Right and who has been tried and cleared several times over terrorist attacks.

The "spouses summit" was then being given a cultural tour of the capital by Clio, wife of Italian president Giorgio Napolitano, before being taken to the summit venue at L'Aquila, the area 90 miles from Rome hit by an earthquake this year.

Carla Bruni, wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy, is snubbing the Rome events, reportedly after Mr Berlusconi boasted to her husband that he "gave" him his wife — which the Italian denies saying. She will instead fly straight to L'Aquila, and meet earthquake victims.

Mrs Brown promised to provide a behind-the-scenes glimpse into G8 when she began a blog about the "spouses' summit". Mrs Brown promised to provide a behind-the-scenes glimpse into G8 when she began a blog about the "spouses' summit". In her first post on www.sarahbrowng8.wordpress.com, Mrs Brown said she was looking forward to meeting up with the other "first ladies".

"Up at the crack of dawn to set off for the G8!" she wrote. "There's a busy few days ahead for me as part of the spouses programme while Gordon is at the summit.

"But I'm really looking forward to meeting up with the other halves' — some of them I have met before from last year's G8 and the G20 in London. They are all very interesting people and I'm hoping to get to know them better and to discuss some of the issues that we all feel strongly about."