Author: staff

His more experienced coalition partner, Micheál Martin, appears best positioned to lead the next government — and insists he won’t turn left to Sinn Féin or right to anti-immigrant independents. Nov 29 9 mins read

So Macron will just appoint a new prime minister, right?  Yes, but it’s not that simple.  The French National Assembly is divided into three political blocs: Macron’s centrists, the far-right National Rally, and the left-wing coalition. The three groups are poles apart on politics and refuse to work together, meaning that any new government could be toppled in days.  “To appoint a new government, you need to find a political space to support it,” Morel said. “But the centrists can’t support even a soft center-left candidate such as [former PM] Bernard Cazeneuve because they hate the far-left France Unbowed party”…

Running as an independent, Georgescu is due to face liberal Elena Lasconi of the Save Romania Union (USR) on Sunday.  The court ordered a ballot recount Thursday over allegations that votes from one candidate, who dropped out a week before the election and threw his support behind Lasconi, were illegally transferred to her on election night.  Constitutional Court President Marian Enache said all nine justices on the court had agreed the allegation was unfounded and that the election results were thus valid. While the recount did lead to slightly different vote totals for some candidates, the variations were not due…

“Merz wants to issue an ultimatum to the nuclear power, Russia,” Scholz wrote. “All I can say is: When it comes to war and peace, you don’t need an unpredictable opposition leader, you need a cool head.” Merz, who is in pole position to become Germany’s next chancellor, has frequently criticized Scholz for refusing to deliver Germany’s long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine. Merz has said he would deliver the cruise missiles to Kyiv if the Kremlin refuses an ultimatum to stop bombing civilian targets in Ukraine. In Germany, Scholz’s surprise trip was widely seen as an attempt by the leader to…

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico criticized the European Union’s new foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, and Council President António Costa for expressing support for Ukraine on behalf of the bloc on Monday.He said had he conveyed those sentiments in a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earlier in the day.“Neither members of the Commission nor the president of the European Council can permit themselves to make statements, in the name of the European Union, on which the European Union and the European Council have never agreed,” Fico told reporters regarding the call. “They made statements that…

Pro-Western parties in Romania will likely seek to form a coalition following Sunday’s parliamentary election, but a surge of support for far-right nationalists looms over the upcoming presidential runoff. Pro-Western parties will likely seek a coalition in Romania’s parliament, as final results show that the Social Democrats won the most votes in Sunday’s election.At the same time, the EU and NATO member state also saw a huge surge of support for far-right nationalists.The far-right nationalist Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR) came in second, ahead of the centre-right National Liberal Party, while two smaller hard-right parties also got enough…

Mitsotakis arrives in London Tuesday amid reports that members of his government have held, per Sky News, “private meetings” with top brass at the museum, which has been involved in long-running talks over a potential loan arrangement of the treasures. Any change in their status — which led to a furious row between the Greek and then- Conservative U.K. government last year — would need to involve the British government. The 1963 British Museum act currently prevents the removal of objects from its collection. During last year’s Greek dust-up with the Tories, Keir Starmer — now prime minister but at…

French Prime Minister Michel Barnier used the controversial Article 49.3 of the French Consitution to force the adoption of next year’s social security budget plan. In retaliation, opposition parties from the left and far right are threatening his government with a no-confidence vote. French Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government is hanging on by a thread. On Monday, Barnier, who lacks a majority in the National Assembly — the lower house of the French parliament — activated the controversial Article 49.3 of the French Constitution to pass his social security plan for next year without a vote. This, in turn, allows…

Many travellers now want to avoid contributing to problems of overtourism and are looking for alternative destinations where they still bring benefits. Overtourism has been plaguing European destinations since travel rebounded post-pandemic, exacerbated by low-cost flights and a surging cruise industry. Once hailed as a golden opportunity, the popularity of digital nomad visas has also turned sour as foreign workers price out local residents, drive gentrification and put a strain onlocal services. This year has seen a slew of new regulations to mitigate the effects of out-of-control visitor numbers, from tourist taxes to selfie bans. Some places that once welcomed digital nomads have…

Avant cela, Michel Barnier et Marine Le Pen s’étaient entretenus dans la matinée par téléphone. A l’issue de ce rendez-vous, le gouvernement s’est engagé à ce qu’il n’y ait pas de mesure de déremboursement des médicaments inscrite dans le PLFSS. Une nouvelle concession au Rassemblement national, qui avait déjà obtenu un recul du gouvernement sur la hausse des taxes sur l’électricité. En revanche, à ce stade, le gouvernement n’a pas accédé aux demandes de la cheffe de file des députés RN qui réclamait l’indexation des retraites sur l’inflation. Marine Le Pen a d’ailleurs déposé un amendement sur ce sujet, “à…