Right ... out!

It seems that only yesterday (give or take the last month or three) we were being told that the Right were taking over in Europe. Frau Merkel had cleaned up in Germany. Sarközy was walking tall in France. The loathsome Berlusconi had nailed down Italy. Cameron was the coming-man in Britain.

The Left, everywhere, were on the defensive.

Suddenly, all is changed.

• Angela Merkel had stated that she wanted her coalition to be judged on creating employment: at the turn of the year German unemployment was 3.43 million. Unemployment continues to rise, and the IMF reckon it could go to 5 million.
• The IMF have a mission in Italy this week, doing the books. Meanwhile, the grossly-overdue review of the Italian tax system is still three or more years into the future.
• All the opinion polls have David Cameron's Tories dead-in-the-water, and desperately hoping for a hung Parliament as their best hope.

Which leaves:

HE MAY have steeled himself for a poor result in the first round of French regional elections, held on Sunday March 14th. But the outcome for France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy, must nonetheless have felt crushing. Polls had suggested that his ruling UMP party would be neck-and-neck at this point with the opposition Socialists. Instead, the Socialists bagged fully 30%, with the UMP trailing at 26%. At the second round vote next Sunday, Mr Sarkozy can now hope at best simply to hold on to Alsace and Corsica, the only two regions out of 22 in mainland France which the UMP governs. At worst, he might even lose both.

Ah, bless! Sphere: Related Content