"We offer our condolences to the family of the woman who was murdered last week in Rome, our thoughts are with them" he started, going on to condemn the "disgraceful attacks on Roma and Romanian citizens that have followed".

"There is no security without law, hence the importance of our laws. European law is clear - residence rights and guaranteed mobility for all" Musacchio said, rejecting the notion of collective treatment for minorities.

"We have key principles in our European laws that must never be violated and I must say Mr. Frattini, I couldn't find, in any of your recent statements, the spirit and the letter of these European laws."

Also addressing the same debate, Italian GUE/NGL MEP Umberto Guidoni said that discussion of such issues "should not give way to emotion" and stressed that penal responsibility must be individual and not attributable to groups of people.

"The current 'witch-hunt of Romanians in Italy must end. We need a European integration policy with the necessary resources and reliable national policies and coordination to back it up. Mobility for Romanian citizens is an inalienable right and the Italian government must act only in accordance with the law. To turn away from this principle would be a dangerous precedent" he concluded.