Europe swings to the right

In The Guardian's online edition, Soumaya Ghannoushi analyses the election victories of Europe's conservative parties and their consequences: "After Sarkozy's resounding victory in last year's French presidential elections and Berlusconi's recent return to power in Italy, the conservatives in Britain have celebrated their largest electoral win for years in what most see as the beginning of the road back to power. ... The new right-wing wave sweeping across the continent has also seen the far right not only win more supporters and sympathisers on its margins, but penetrate into the mainstream itself. ... But the far right's greatest gains have not been made in direct electoral contests. Its most significant achievements have been silent and invisible, won on the battleground of discourse, with its slogans and demands gradually infiltrating mainstream political discourse. From immigration and asylum, to national identity, and national pride, the far right's populist rhetoric has moved to the centre stage of politics."

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