Thousands flee Bosnia and Serbia floods
Euro elections: Finding a match
BBC News | Europe | World Edition
The online toys trying to make your EU vote easier
The Rise of ?Outsider? Parties in the 2014 EU Elections
Source: Henry Jackson Society From Executive Summary: In the wake of the Eurozone crisis, the rise of ?outsider? parties from both ends of the political spectrum has increased concerns over the future viability of the European project. In some countries, traditionally fringe parties have been able to force their way into
Spanish Government Threats to Censor Social Media
Global Voices Online by Nicki Gorny
Image uploaded to Twitter by @Serge_Pamies
«We have to combat cybercrime and promote cybersecurity, and to clean up undesirable social media.» These were the words of the Spanish Minister of Interior, Jorge Fenández Díaz, after the wave of comments published on social media about the assassination ofIsabel Carrasco, president of the Province of León.
The Farage Paradox: UKIP on the rise but so is public support for EU membership
Open Europe blog
Poll watchers in the last few years would have seen many polls showing a majority of Brits would vote ‘out’ in a referendum of the UK’s membership of the EU. In the last few months this trend has been slowly reversing, and a new Ipsos-MORI poll out today shows that if a referendum were held right now, 54% would vote to stay in – the highest support for the EU for a few years – and 37% would vote to leave
Presidential candidates, European federalism and Tony Giddens
Centre for European Reform
These European elections promise to be difficult for the EU. Opinion polls are predicting a surge in support for anti-EU parties of left and right. Furthermore, if past elections are a guide to the future, voter turnout will fall again. It slid steadily from 63 per cent in the first European elections, in1979, to 43 per cent five years ago. The European Parliament ? despite gaining more powers through each successive treaty change ? has failed to convince a majority of voters that it is an admirable or useful institution.
Europe?s spectacle of compassion for migrants
open Democracy News Analysis – by Benjamin Ward
The EU?s approach exploits what is effectively a loophole in international law. If a person never reaches the EU state?s territory, the legal obligations under refugee and human rights law are never triggered. Shouldn?t we be talking about this in the run-up to the European elections?
MAIN FOCUS: Eurozone growth remains feeble | 16/05/2014
The Eurozone economy continues to grow, albeit only minimally. According to preliminary Eurostat figures put out on Thursday, quarter-on-quarter GDP rose in Germany and Spain, for example, but dropped in countries like the Netherlands, Italy and Portugal after a short period of growth. The crisis is not yet over, commentators warn, and call for growth incentives to replace austerity.
Social democracy in Norway?s culture wars
open Democracy News Analysis – by Martin Sandbu
An exploration of the various elements of Norwegian culture that have over time fostered a deep-rooted conspiratorial populism, challenging the traditional picture of Norway as a consensual social democracy.
Norwegians infrequently find their country?s reputation under attack. But last October, headlines around the world screamed that Norwegians had elected the extreme right-wing party of mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik to government. In a firefighting effort, Norway?s diplomatic corps was mobilised to explain that while Breivik had indeed once been a member, he had never played a significant role in it (he quit because he found it too moderate), and that the Progress party, while populist and on the right, is a serious organisation with a comprehensive policy programme, not a one-trick pony of Islamophobe conspiracy theorists.
Spain progressing? Time for a reality check
open Democracy News Analysis – by Liz Cooper
The right-wing in Spain is getting back into its stride. Will the electorate use the opportunity of the imminent European elections to point out that being lied to by politicians and treated to unacceptable delays by the courts may not represent the type of modern democracy that many want to live in?
The next EU Parliament will host a new Eurosceptic group on the right. EurActiv explores if it will endure, and how it might fall apar
The last five years have been characterized by an increasing destruction of the European project. What are the deep political and institutional changes necessary at the European level in order to assure social and economic justice on the continent?
How did the Snowden saga impact Spain? How did the government and society react to the revelations about surveillance and privacy? Where do they stand almost twelve months later?