David Cameron’s Tories Slump to a New Low
SUNDAY EXPRESS: DAVID CAMERON’S embattled premiership suffered a hammer blow last night as support for the Conservative Party crashed to its lowest level for a decade.

An exclusive poll for the Sunday Express puts the Tories on just 29 per cent while Labour has soared to 43 per cent.

The fuel shortage fiasco, George Osborne’s disastrous Budget, a series of embarrassing U-turns on tax and a flatline economy have seen a resurgent Labour eclipse the Conservatives.

Ed Miliband’s party now stands 14 points clear of the Tories, putting it on course for an outright majority in a general election.

The gap between Labour and the Conservatives is now wider than at any time since December 2002 when former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith faced the on-going popularity of a pre-Gulf war Tony Blair. » | Kirsty Buchanan | Sunday, June 10, 2012

Don't Bet On A Hung U.K. Parliament

General Election 2010: A Battle Between Hope and Fear
THE TELEGRAPH: The general election campaign will be a “battle of hope and fear” as the Tories call for change and Labour warns against risking the recovery.

David Cameron, left, and Gordon Brown Photographs: The Telegraph
As Gordon Brown formally announced the dissolution of parliament, the Prime Minister claimed that the Conservatives could not be trusted with the economy *.

However, David Cameron said the public had a choice between a “fresh start” under his leadership, offering the country a vision of “hope and optimism” rather than five more years under Mr Brown. >>> Andrew Porter, Political Editor | Tuesday, April 06, 2010

*This is a bit rich coming from Gordo, isn’t it? If anyone has had enough time to do something good for the economy, he has. And look at the cock-up he’s made of it! He couldn’t have made a bigger cock-up if he had tried! The state of the economy speaks for itself. And what about all that gold you sold off at rock-bottom prices, Gordo? That cost the public nearly £5bn! You’re a clown, Gordo, a buffoon, and you know it. Step aside! Make room for someone else! Someone else, hopefully shrewder, more astute. You’ve had your chance, and you've blown it. By the way, they might appreciate you more north of the border. Socialism, they tell me, is more appreciated in Scotland than it is south of the border. Run away and play with that economy, and leave us to lick our wounds! – © Mark

Sarkozy Braced for Poll Defeat as Angry French Voters Look to the Left
THE GUARDIAN: Socialists and Greens expect significant gains in regional elections as ruling party blamed for poor economic situation

The leader of the French Socialist party, Martine Aubry, speaks at a rally in Paris. Photograph: The Guardian
Nicolas Sarkozy faces an embarrassing setback at the polls over the next week as France votes in elections that look likely to hand a significant victory to the opposition Socialist party.

Although not officially on the ballot for the regional elections, whose first of two rounds will be held on Sunday, the embattled leader is expected to be punished indirectly as voters shun his rightwing UMP party in favour of leftwing and green alternatives.

With opinion polls showing the Socialists – who won control of 20 of the 22 mainland regions at the last vote in 2004 – will consolidate their "pink tide" or even increase it, commentators say the predicted defeat will reflect voters' dissatisfaction with Sarkozy.

Today, Sarkozy attempted today to distance himself from his party's impending drubbing, insisting local elections had little to do with national politics. He told Le Figaro Magazine: "The vote … is a regional vote: its consequences will therefore be regional."

However, because the significance of the poll – which elects regional presidents and assemblies – is limited, many are predicting it will be seen as an unofficial referendum on Sarkozy's leadership. The president is more than halfway through his five-year term, and this is the last major electoral exercise France will see before his mandate expires in 2012. >>> Lizzy Davies in Paris | Friday, March 12, 2010

Sócrates Wins Second Term in Portugal
FINANCIAL TIMES: José Sócrates, Portugal’s Socialist prime minister, was re-elected to a second term in the general election on Sunday, but his centre-left party lost its overall majority in parliament.

Mr Sócrates is expected to form a minority government and seek support for a government programme and the 2010 budget with parties to both the left and right.

However, his failure to win a comfortable majority raised the prospect of political instability and a weak government that could fall before completing a four-year term.

Only two minority administrations have survived a full term since Portugal returned to democracy in 1974. Before Mr Sócrates’ election in May 2005, the country had three governments in three years.

The Socialists won 37 per cent of the vote, down from 45 per cent in the previous election in February 2005. The centre-right Social Democrats (PSD), the main opposition party, polled 29 per cent, roughly equal to their previous result.

The Socialists’ clear win was a significant personal victory for Mr Sócrates, 52, whose popularity had been damaged by economic recession, scandal and unpopular reforms. >>> Peter Wise in Lisbon | Sunday, September 27, 2009

Related:
Smoke ban PM lights up on plane >>> Graham Keeley, The Guardian | Friday, May 16, 2009

Socialists They Are and Socialists They’ll Be!
MAIL Online: The BBC and Channel 4 could be forced to use more female and ethnic characters and presenters in TV shows under controversial reforms of equality laws.

The change could hit programmes such as Top Gear, which has an all-male presenting team, and EastEnders, which has screened episodes featuring all-black, all-Asian and all-female casts.

State-funded organisations are being ordered to boost the proportion of female, black and gay staff to reflect the make-up of the UK population under plans unveiled by Labour's deputy leader Harriet Harman. Now Even Top Gear Could Fall Foul of Harman Sexism Law >>> By Ian Drury and Sarah Harris | Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Wäre Obama in Österreich denkbar?
DIE PRESSE: Wer in Europa nach oben will, gehört besser nicht einer Minderheit an. Die politische Vertretung ethnischer Minderheiten steckt erst in den Kinderschuhen.

Die Begeisterung für Barack Obama kennt keine Grenzen. Bis zu drei Viertel der Europäer hätten ihn diversen Umfragen zufolge zum US-Präsidenten gewählt, dementsprechend groß ist die Freude über den Sieg des Charismatikers auch auf dem Alten Kontinent. Doch Europa jubelt Obama aus sicherer Entfernung zu. „Schon allein wegen seiner Hautfarbe hätte er in keinem europäischen Land eine Chance“, meinte der konservative US-Politologe Robert Kagan schon vor der Wahl spitz im „Spiegel“. Stimmt das? Könnten Menschen, die anders aussehen als die Mehrheitsbevölkerung und noch dazu einen seltsamen Namen haben, jemals Staats- oder Regierungschefs in Finnland, Spanien oder Österreich werden?

Der Vergleich mit Obama hinkt natürlich. Er gehört einer Minderheit an, die ungleich länger in den USA lebt als etwa Türken in Österreich. Und eigentlich gehört er nicht einmal dieser Minderheit richtig an: mit einer weißen Mutter und einem Vater aus Kenia. Es wäre absurd, von Österreichern oder Deutschen 40 Jahre nach Ankunft der ersten Gastarbeiter etwas zu verlangen, was den Amerikanern erst 143 Jahre nach Abschaffung der Sklaverei gelungen ist. >>> Christian Ultsch / Die Presse | 7. November 2008

THE TELEGRAPH: Trevor Phillips: Racism Would Stop Barack Obama Being Prime Minister in the UK

Barack Obama would have found it impossible to become prime minister in Britain because of "institutional racism" within the British political system, according to Trevor Phillips, the chairman of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission.

Although he believes the public would embrace a black leader, he also believes the system would prevent him from getting to the top.

Mr Phillips cited the fact that there are only 15 ethnic-minority MPs in Westminster, noting that "the problem is not the electorate, the problem is the machine."

He added: "If Barack Obama had lived here I would be very surprised if even somebody as brilliant as him would have been able to break through the institutional stranglehold on power within the Labour Party.

"The parties and the unions and the think-tanks are all very happy to sign up to the general idea of advancing the cause of minorities but in practice they would like somebody else to do the business. It's institutional racism."

Mr Phillips claimed The Conservatives have done better than Labour at increasing the number of black and Asian candidates. >>> By Chris Irvine | November 8, 2008

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