LONDON (Reuters) - Italian Finance Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said on Wednesday a British exit from the European Union could "act as a detonator" that splits other countries away from the bloc amid tensions over migration and weak economic growth.
"In other European countries there might be a temptation to do like the UK, to engineer other Brexits all over the place, so this would lead to widespread fragmentation in the EU," he said in an interview with Britain's Channel 4 television during a trip to London.
Padoan said the June 23 referendum came at a time when other countries in Europe were facing problems with high unemployment and pressure from high levels of migration.
"Brexit could act as a detonator to that and we could have a perfect political storm. It's not just one domestic political issue with the UK there," he said.
Britain would face long and tough negotiations if it sought to leave the EU, Padoan added.
"The UK and the whole of Europe would in fact enter a prolonged period of new negotiations - how to actually separate one country from the rest of the union. It's not going to be a piece of cake. It's going to be very difficult," he said.