Italy may be the nation of romance, but young couples in Rome are certainly not feeling any love for their mayor at the moment.

Many lovers have indulged in a romantic rite in which they attach a padlock bearing a doting message onto a lamppost on the Ponte Milvio - a bridge over the river Tiber - and throw the keys into the water.

However, the city's mayor, Walter Veltroni, is clearly not being swept along by the wave of romance as he has introduced fines for anyone caught leaving a padlock on the lamppost, the BBC reports.

Unsurprisingly, he has now been accused of "trampling on lovers' rights" by the opposition, but the city hall has signalled that the mayor is unlikely to change his mind.

Legend has it that dating couples who write their names on a padlock and lock it onto the third lamppost on the bridge will spend the rest of their lives together.

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? Adfero Ltd