Tag Archives: European Union

The Telegraph reports: Polls have opened in the first round of France’s most unpredictable and high-stakes presidential election in decades, with far-Right leader Marine Le Pen and the maverick centrist Emmanuel Macron leading the field.A Le Pen victory could lead to the collapse of the European Union, experts warn, but after the victory of Donald Trump in the US and …

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump says he believes Thursday’s attack in Paris will “probably help” far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in France’s upcoming election. In an interview with The Associated Press, Trump says he is not explicitly endorsing Le Pen. But he says he believes she will be helped by the attack that left a Paris police officer dead, because …

Starting now. CBS News reports: The prime minister’s visit comes a month prior to Mr. Trump’s scheduled visit to Italy for his first G7 summit, where the leaders of the U.S., Italy, Germany, Canada, France, Japan and Britain will discuss the economy and, likely, national and global security issues. The G-7 nations have attempted to pressure Russia to put an …

ABC News reports: Former President Barack Obama spoke to French Presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron on Thursday, but “an endorsement was not the purpose of the call,” Obama’s spokesman said in a statement. However, “President Obama remains deeply committed” to France “as a close ally of the United States, and as a leader on behalf of liberal values in Europe and …

The BBC reports: Britain’s departure from the European Union is “an historic moment from which there can be no turning back”, Theresa May has told MPs. The prime minister said it was a “unique opportunity” to “shape a brighter future” for the UK. She was speaking after Britain’s EU ambassador formally triggered the two year countdown to the UK’s exit …

Reuters reports: The European Union will disappear, French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen told a rally on Sunday, promising to shield France from globalisation as she sought to fire up her supporters in the final four weeks before voting gets underway. Buoyed by the unexpected election of Donald Trump in the United States and by Britain’s vote to leave the …

The New York Daily News reports: Pope Francis urged European leaders on Friday to resist the “false forms of security” promised by populists who want to wall themselves off and instead bank on a future of greater solidarity and union. Francis welcomed 27 EU leaders to the Vatican on the eve of a summit to mark the 60th anniversary of …

The Independent reports: Nicola Sturgeon has said an independent Scotland would seek full membership of the European Union and dismissed suggestions the country would have to join the back of the queue. Scotland’s First Minister also said she was willing to have “reasonable discussions” with Theresa May over the timing of a new plebiscite but warned it would not be …

The BBC reports: Prime Minister Theresa May is to officially notify the European Union next Wednesday that the UK is leaving. Downing Street said she would write a letter to the European Council, adding that it hoped negotiations on the terms of exit and future relations could then begin as quickly as possible. The move comes nine months after a …

The Guardian reports: The big winner of Wednesday’s election – and now the largest party of the Dutch left for the first time – was GreenLeft, headed by 30-year-old Jesse Klaver, hailed by his enthusiastic supporters as the “Jessiah”. With more than 95% of votes counted, the party – formed 25 years ago by a merger of communists, pacifists, evangelicals …

Reuters reports: Slovenia permitted same-sex marriages for the first time from Friday under a law giving gay couples largely the same rights as heterosexuals though barring them from jointly adopting children. The head of the unit in charge of weddings in Slovenia’s second largest city Maribor, Ksenija Klampfer, told Reuters the first lesbian wedding would take place there on Saturday. …

The BBC reports: The Scottish Parliament has voted by 90 to 34 to oppose the UK government starting the Brexit process. The Supreme Court ruled last month that there was no legal need for Holyrood to give its consent to the triggering of Article 50. But First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she would let MSPs have a say, despite it …

The Daily Record reports: Ranting Brexit cheerleader Nigel Farage was the victim of some top trolling in Brussels as a fellow MEP held up a sign behind him claiming: “He’s lying to you”. Seb Dance scribbled the note on a piece of paper along with an arrow pointing to the ex-UKIP leader and carefully positioned it behind him during a …

The New York Times reports: In a speech that holds the potential to define Britain’s relations with its neighbors for decades to come, Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday charted a course toward a clean break with the European Union after more than four decades of integration with the Continent. Mrs. May emphasized Britain’s determination to regain control of migration …

The Associated Press reports: Dozens of people have participated in a gay pride event in highly conservative Montenegro where authorities are promising to boost gay rights as part of efforts to join the European Union. Hundreds of policemen deployed Saturday in downtown Podgorica, the capital, to prevent possible attacks from extremists. Participants in the pride march carried banners reading “born …

The Guardian reports: Malta has become the first country in Europe to ban gay conversion therapy after the parliament in Valetta unanimously approved a bill outlawing attempts to “cure” homosexuals of their sexuality. Under the new Affirmation of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Gender Expression Act, anyone found guilty of trying to “change, repress or eliminate a person’s sexual orientation, …

The BBC reports: Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has resigned after suffering a heavy defeat in a referendum over his plan to reform the constitution. In a late-night statement, he said he took responsibility for the outcome. He said the No camp must now make clear proposals. An exit poll for state broadcaster RAI suggests 42-46% voted to back reform, …

NBC News reports: Romania’s constitutional court said Tuesday it would consult with a European court regarding the case of a same-sex couple who want their marriage abroad to be legally recognized in Romania. Court president Valer Dorneanu said he was seeking information from the European Court of Justice to see how other EU countries where same-sex marriages are not legal …

The BBC reports: Parliament must vote on whether the UK can start the process of leaving the EU, the High Court has ruled. This means the government cannot trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty – beginning formal exit-negotiations with the EU – on its own. Theresa May says the referendum – and existing ministerial powers – mean MPs do …

Yesterday the Russian embassy in Britain tweeted out the above cartoon which depicts Eurozone member nations as pigs cowering behind a barricade. The pigs are doubtlessly a reference to the acronym PIIGS, which was used by economists when EU members Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain began struggling to refinance government debt during the banking crisis that started in 2009. …