In 1994 he joined Forza Italia, of which he was Vice-President (1994–96) and President of faction (1996–2001) in the Chamber of Deputies. In 2001 he was appointed Minister for the Implementation of the Government Program in the Berlusconi II government. Subsequently, from 2002 to 2006, he served as Minister of the Interior in the second and third Berlusconi government. He was also the president of the Antimafia Commission from 2008 to 2013.
