The Tuscany Audit Court opened the case in October following allegations made by a restaurant owner that Renzi, who was mayor from 2009 until 2014, regularly claimed reimbursement after dining out with family and friends.

The story emerged in the Italian daily, Il Fatto Quotidiano, which alleged that Renzi spent some €600,000 on dining and catering during his five years as mayor of Florence.

Renzi was quick to deny the claims, telling the newspaper soon after the story was published: “I was the first person to put my expenses online in Italy. Whenever I ate with my family and friends I paid from my own pocket.

“All my expenses between 2004 and 2013 have already been thoroughly examined by the Court of Audit.”

The court examined the expense receipts, but said on Wednesday that there was not enough evidence to pursue the case, Il Fatto reported.

Claims of Renzi's extravagant dining habits came days after the Ignazio Marino was forced to quit as mayor of Rome over an expenses row involving a handful of dinners that had been charged to city hall during his 28-month tenure.

Marino later backtracked on his decision to resign after the case against him was also dropped, only to be automatically unseated at the end of October when more than half of Rome’s elected councillors resigned en masse.