Elections
Germany’s likely new coalition wants more EU sovereignty, fossil car ban
Leaders of Germany's Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens, and the business-friendly FDP have reached a preliminary agreement including plans to end the internal combustion engine and take an assertive stance on the rule of law in the EU.
Czechs want to know what’s wrong with their ill president
When Vaclav Havel nearly died of a ruptured intestine as Czech president in 1998, doctors provided daily updates on his condition.
Poles protest against migrant pushbacks
Thousands of people demonstrated in Warsaw on Sunday (17 October) against pushbacks of migrants at the Polish-Belarusian border.
Conservative mayor Marki-Zay wins run-off to challenge Hungary’s Orban
Peter Márki-Zay, a conservative provincial mayor, was chosen as the unified opposition challenger to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at next year's election, after winning a primary vote Sunday (17 October).
German SPD’s Scholz moves closer to succeeding Merkel as chancellor
German centre-left Social Democrat's (SPD) Olaf Scholz, took a major step towards succeeding Angela Merkel as chancellor on Friday (15 October), announcing that he and the leaders of two smaller parties aimed to move into formal coalition talks.
Merkel warns of ‘centrifugal forces’ in EU, calls for unity
German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned of dividing forces in the European Union and issued a plea for more unity across the continent, speaking at an award ceremony speech in Spain on Thursday (14 October).
Macron’s secret campaign team points to conservative battle ahead
French President Emmanuel Macron is building an election campaign machine stacked with former conservative insiders, because he has realised he needs to win over more centre-right voters to secure a second term next year.
Norway’s Labour-led cabinet takes office in day overshadowed by attack
Norway's new centre-left government formally took over power on Thursday (14 October) after winning elections last month, though the ceremony was overshadowed by a deadly bow-and-arrow attack in the town of Kongsberg.
France’s Le Pen says she will take down wind turbines if she is elected
French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen said that if she is elected president next year she will end all subsidies for renewable energy and will take down France's wind turbines.
Protocol row reopens Unionist fears of another Northern Ireland sell–out
Sell–out, betrayal and sacrifice are all key words in the lexicon of Northern Irish politics for both the nationalist and unionist communities, and those in between. Brexit, and the Northern Ireland protocol, in particular, have brought them back into popular use.
Jourova: EU ‘will start collapsing’ unless it takes on Polish challenge
The European Union "will start collapsing" unless it challenges a ruling by Poland's top court that national legislation trumps European laws, Commission Vice President Věra Jourová said on Monday (11 October).
Italian police arrest far-right party officials after anti-vax riot
Italian police said on Sunday (10 October) they had arrested 12 people, including top officials of the extreme right-wing party Forza Nuova, following clashes in Rome against a government drive to make the COVID-19 "Green Pass" mandatory for all workers
Poland’s PiS party is pushing the country towards EU exit, EPP warns
The centre-right European People's Party (EPP), the largest political group in the European Parliament, sounded the alarm on Thursday (7 October), warning that Poland's ruling party is pushing the country towards ‘Polexit’.
Czech PM, named in Pandora probe, leads polls ahead of vote
A populist billionaire at odds with the European Union who featured in the Pandora Papers is the narrow favourite in Czech elections starting on Friday (8 October) that promise a tight result.
German small parties pick Social Democrats over conservatives for coalition talks
Germany’s Greens and the liberal FDP, two kingmakers after the inconclusive federal election, have announced they want to launch talks about a potential coalition with the Social Democrat SPD, rather than with outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU/CSU. The first discussions are planned for Thursday (7 October).
Romania faces political crisis as MPs collapse government
The Romanian government of liberal Prime Minister Florin Cîțu was brought down by a no-confidence vote in parliament on Tuesday (5 October), threatening to plunge the country into fresh political instability.
Emotional Merkel, marking German reunification, calls for tolerance
Angela Merkel urged Germans on Sunday (3 October) to forge a common future that draws on their diverse backgrounds, harking back to the 2015 decision to admit 1 million refugees that was a defining moment of her long chancellorship.
EU mulls approving Hungary, Poland recovery plans, with conditions
The EU is prepared to approve multi-billion-euro recovery plans for Hungary and Poland in the coming weeks, but with strict conditions attached, bloc officials said.
After ‘Mercron’: What German elections could mean for the Franco-German tandem
With the Merkel era coming to an end, both the Franco-German relationship and the tandem’s role in the EU are at a watershed. For the moment, however, France seems to be holding its breath.
France’s Sarkozy likely to avoid jail despite new conviction
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was handed a one-year prison sentence by a Paris court on Thursday (30 September) after being found guilty of illegal campaign financing over his failed 2012 re-election bid.
Pro-EU Klara Dobrev leads in opposition primary to take on Hungary’s Orbán
Klara Dobrev, a 49-year-old lawyer, has emerged as the front-runner in a joint opposition bid to unseat Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in 2022 elections, partial results of an opposition primary showed on Thursday (30 September).
Hungary hits out at Brussels’ funding ‘blackmail’
The Hungarian government on Tuesday (28 September) condemned what it termed Brussels' "blackmail" over the allocation of EU funding as differences between the eastern member and the European Union institutions deepen.
EU parliament chief congratulates Scholz as German election winner
The head of the European Parliament congratulated Olaf Scholz, the chancellor candidate for Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) as winner after a narrow election victory, the first official European Union reaction to the vote result.