Departures of note

Raffaele Costa was an Italian lawyer and politician born in Mondovì, in the province of Cuneo, who first entered Parliament in 1976 for the Italian Liberal Party (PLI). He rose to become the party's last national secretary from 1993 to 1994, presiding over it during its dissolution at the transition between the First and Second Republic.

In the 1990s he served four times as a minister across successive governments: in the Amato governments (Community and regional policies, then Health), the Ciampi government (Transport), and the first Berlusconi government (Health again). As health minister he became known for celebrated anti-waste 'blitzes' in hospitals.

A member of Forza Italia later on, in 1997 he narrowly lost the Turin mayoral election to Valentino Castellani by fewer than five thousand votes. His parliamentary career of around thirty years ended in 2006, after which he also served as a member of the European Parliament and as president of the Province of Cuneo from 2004 to 2009, resigning for health reasons shortly after the 2010 regional elections. His son Enrico is currently the Forza Italia group leader in the Chamber of Deputies.