By calling a snap general election, Theresa May took a gamble and failed miserably. From having a small majority in the last parliament and a 20-point lead in the opinion polls, she has ended up with neither. On hearing the news, on Friday morning, I got out of bed with a spring in my step. […]
Opinion
UK Election – Half A View From Half An Expat
The UK election is upon us and, even for a disenfranchised expat (well, half an expat), it’s still interesting. It’s that time again in the political calendar, where all politicians become very nervous, and start belatedly worrying about what everybody else actually thinks of them. If I were in Theresa May’s shoes (something that my […]
Emmanuel Macron Must Stand Up And Deliver
Emmanuel Macron has won an unprecedented victory. The question now is, will he be able to deliver his promises? The victory chants echoing all around the world famous Louvre museum underscore that, what was unthinkable a little more than 36 months ago, has just taken place. Emmanuel Macron quit banking, became finance minister and, today, […]
French Presidential Debate: Much Ado About Nothing
From time to time, there is such a build-up to a mid-week football match, that you cannot wait for the Wednesday night. The build-up to this week’s French presidential debate promised a night of high drama, philosophical insights and antipodal ideologies. Instead, I was forced to watch the debate on my iPad, my son having […]
French Press (4) – A Coffee Drinker’s View On The French Presidential Election
(IV) Emmanuel Macron’s Late Night Out Up to now, compared to Marine Le Pen, I’ve been quite nice to Emmanuel Macron. Well, one thing’s for sure: nobody’s perfect I was fortunate enough to attend the Euro 2000 football championship final between Italy and France, that took place in Rotterdam. I was standing in the midst […]
French Press (3) – A Coffee Drinker’s View On The French Presidential Election
(III) Evolution And Decomposition Of French Politics The fact that there is no Republican candidate in the second round of the French presidential elections, coupled with the disintegration of the French socialists, underscores the fact that the French political landscape has undergone a seismic shift, for the first time in the long history of […]
French Press (2) – A Coffee Drinker’s View On The French Presidential Election
(II) Marine Le Pen’s Splitting Headache Over Europe The situation at the Whirlpool plant, situated in the northern town of Amiens, underscores the nature of the combat between Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron. The fact that the American owners want to relocate the plant in Poland, is, for Le Pen, the epitome of […]
Why You Should All Vote For Jeremy Corbyn
Plato And Jeremy Corbyn: “Whose Idea Was This Anyway?” With the June election rapidly approaching, I’m going to dedicate a post to the current leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn. I know that my views don’t matter one iota, and, what’s more, I cannot even vote. Well, that should make you listen […]
Am I Dreaming, Or Is Turkey About To Leave The EU?
If I talked to you about a country that just had a dubiously run referendum, the result of which was so close, as to be invalid for such a huge constitutional change, you would probably be thinking of Turkey. If I then told you that the leader of this country will organise elections with the […]
France Can Accept The Truth, But Cannot Stand The Lies
Mes enfants, it’s fast approaching squeaky bum time in France, with the first round of the 2017 presidential election due on the 23rd April. The political situation in France is, as I see it, similar to that of 2002, when far-right candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen, father of present-day Marine, reached the second round to everybody’s […]