Extinction warning to UK s Labour as Europe s centre-left struggles
Issued on:
13/05/2021 - 12:36 As with many populists in Europe, the UK s free-spending Boris Johnson appeals to voters who are to the left on economic policy, but conservative when it comes to values and identity , says analyst Anand Menon JUSTIN TALLIS AFP 4 min
London (AFP)
Britain s Labour party is licking its wounds after another electoral drubbing, and can look to the decaying remains of once-great movements in Europe for a sign of potential worse to come.
Across the continent, insiders and analysts say, social democratic parties are struggling for relevance: riven by infighting, lacking a coherent message, hobbled by weak leadership.
The survey of 1,910 Germans showed support for Merkel s CDU-CSU bloc had fallen yet again, from 24% the previous week to hit its lowest level in the history of the weekly poll.
The Green Party remained in the lead with 26% of the vote, albeit with its rating also down 1 percentage point from the week before. In third place, with 16%, was the Social Democratic Party, the current junior coalition partner with the CDU-CSU.
The center-left SPD announced Sunday that the Finance Minister Olaf Scholz will lead its election campaign. So he will be facing the Greens Annalena Baerbock and the center-right CDU-CSU s candidate Armin Laschet in the race to replace Merkel in September s vote.
Controversy surrounds Merkel s new lockdown powers thelancet.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thelancet.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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