Teachers must not spit at headteachers, Italy's Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday. The Cassation Court upheld a decision by a Palermo appeals court condemning a teacher, identified as Antonino R., who spat three times at a female principal during a teachers' meeting at a training institute in the Sicilian capital.

The defendant tried to convince judges that spitting was a way of expressing his opinion about the behaviour of the principal, which he thought was ''oppressive''.

He also asked the judges to reopen investigations to verify the ''direction and efficacy of the spit'', arguing that he was incapable of producing large quantities of saliva because heated argument had made his mouth dry.

But the court said it was ''irrelevant whether or not the spit reached the headteacher'' or whether problems with salivation ''would have made its execution more problematic''.

''The fact remains that there was spitting, and it was directed at the principal,'' the judges said.

They also pointed out that the teacher had said ''I'm putting perfume on her'' in between spits, removing any doubt over his motives.

The court also slammed the teacher's claim that his actions were an acceptable form of disagreement, ruling that spitting is not a ''legitimate'' means of ''critical expression''.