euro|topics - The end of Labour and the consequences for Europe

Main focus of Monday, May 5, 2008

The end of Labour and the consequences for Europe

The Labour Party and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown have suffered disastrous results in local elections in England and Wales. It looks like the end is near for Labour after over ten years in power. What consequences does this shift have for Europe as a whole?

Népszabadság - Hungary

Endre Aczél sees little hope for British Prime Minister Gordon Brown: "Brown's rare misfortune is that not he but his boss Tony Blair harvested the fruits of his greatest deeds. And he became boss when there was nothing left to win. ... But perhaps there is more to it than that. Blair was at the helm of the British government for ten years, and as long as he was there he inspired public opinion, something which the demure technocrat Brown, by far the less gifted speaker, is incapable of. This in turn rubs off on the party. The sentiment is spreading among voters that after so long, it is time for the Conservatives to have a chance. And Labour is now seen as being 'dull'." (05/05/2008)

Le Monde - France

Patrick Roger speaks with Dominique Reynie, professor at the Institut d'études politiques in Paris, about a right-wing shift in Europe after local elections in Italy and the UK. "I identify a shift to the right not only in Rome and London, but across Europe. We are seeing a spectacular mood swing among European voters. ... In some countries where the Left occupied important ground such as Finland, Belgium and even Greece, social democratic and socialist parties are racking up one defeat after the next. ... This confirms what we have been observing in Europe since 1996: a tendency for radical movements to spread. The right-wing is not only victorious; it is gaining ground with increasingly tough-minded programmes. The Right seems to benefit more from economic swings, regardless of what direction they take. When things are looking up, the demand for liberalisation and de-regularisation increases as well, which the Left - with few exceptions - seems unable to respond to convincingly." (03/05/2008)

De Volkskrant - Netherlands

The Dutch daily concludes that the defeat of the Labour Party in Great Britain will not have immediate repercussions for the rest of Europe, pointing out that "these were 'only' local elections." But it adds that even so, Prime Minister Gordon Brown's position has been weakened. "Brown's mission to halt the fall of Labour which began under Blair has failed for the time being. ... What poses an even greater threat to Labour is that many middle-class voters who switched to Labour under Blair have now switched back to the Conservatives. ... And what is even more important in the long term is whether he [Brown] can make clear what he aims to achieve with his policies and how Labour differs from the Conservatives now that it has adopted the 'Third Way'. In this respect Brown's struggle resembles those of many social democratic parties in Europe. Wouter Bos [the leader of the Social Democrats in the Netherlands] will no doubt be observing him with interest." (05/05/2008)

Süddeutsche Zeitung - Germany

"The English and Welsh have taken the opportunity to teach the unpopular Labour government a lesson. ... Labour's results were so disastrous that many are already speaking of the end of a political era. The new centre, that broad coalition of workers and liberals which swept Labour to power a decade ago, is no more, and has outlived its inventor Tony Blair, who left office last summer, by less than a year. .... The political roadmap must be written anew. Labour has all but disappeared as a political force in the south of England. ... Gordon Brown took office just ten months ago. ... but now the party is aghast to see that rather than being the solution to its problems, Brown himself is the problem." (05/05/2008)

» To the complete press review of Monday, May 5, 2008

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