Born in Perugia in 1937. Member of the Chamber of Deputies for three terms. Appointed Minister for Public Administration and Regional Affairs in 1994. From 1969 until 1983, he was a Professor of Comparative Politics at the C. Alfieri Faculty of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Florence. Since 1984, he has been a Full Professor of Political Science and Director of the Comparative Politics Research Centre of the Bocconi University in Milan. He was Co-founder and Scientific Director of the Luigi Einaudi Research and Documentation Centre in Turin, Co-founder and Chairman of the Rosselli Foundation in Turin, and General Director of Milan ISPI (Institute of International Political Studies). Editorialist for: La Stampa, Il Corriere della Sera, Il Sole 24 Ore, Il Giornale, Il Messaggero, Il Mondo.
Since 1984 he has been the Italian Minister for the Artistic Heritage and Cultural Activities.