The rise of the eurosceptics: Farage, Le Pen and Alfred Sant

The 2014 European Parliament elections have been characterised by an alarming surge in populists groups, with the British UKIP and French Front National dominating national elections and increasing their presence in the EP by 31 seats. The public flocked to vote for anti-European parties across several EU member states and even Malta elected its own Eurosceptic representative, but carefully packaged him in socialist colours.

UKIP capitalised on negative British sentiments on immigration to win an additional 10 seats in the EP (Photo credit: LSE)

Like many other staunch supporters of the European Union, the rise of right wing and left wing parties in the European Parliament is cause for much concern. The following is a brief overview of how major European democracies have voted so far, with many results still being preliminary:

• Denmark -DPP (Denmark People’s Party) – gained 2 seats for a total of 4 MEPs. A right-wing party that is affiliated with the now defunct AEN (Alliance for Europe of the Nations). Current MEPs sit with the EFD (Europe of Freedom and Democracy)
• France – FN (Front National) – won an additional 21 seats for a total of 25 MEPs. Far right group part of the pan political group EAF (European Alliance for Freedom EP group)
• Germany – NPD (National Democratic Party of Germany) – Won their first seat in the EP.  A far right Neo-nazi group that is part of a non-recognized political party called the European National Front. No word yet as to which party these will join or if they will become Non-Inscrits (not affiliated with any group)
• Greece – SYRIZA (Coalition of the Radical Left) – estimated to win an additonal 5 seats for a total of 6 MEPs. Radical Left group part of the GUE/NGL (European United Left/Nordic Green Left )
• Greece – Golden Dawn – Estimated to win their first 3 seats in the EP. A far right Neo-nazi group that is part of a non-recognized political party called the European National Front. No word yet as to which party these will join or if they will become Non-Inscrits (not affiliated with any group)
• Ireland – Sinn Fein – won  their first three seats. A far left group that is expected to sit with the GUE/NGL (European United Left/Nordic Green Left )
• Italy – Five Star Movement – a new party that has won 17 seats in the EP. A Far right party that is considered populist and highly Eurosceptic
• UK – UKIP (UK Independence Party) – won an additional 10 seats for a total of 23 MEPs. Far right group part of the EFD (Europe of Freedom and Democracy)

Until official results have been published, eurosceptic these far right and left party groups have increased their total seats by 62, to give a total of 82.

There are also many other small periphery parties from several member states that have gained a couple of seats in these elections. At the moment, all eyes are on Marine Le Pen’s FN group, as it is set to start consulting with other parties to form a coalition and create a new parliamentary group in the EP. This would mean that more funding and more influence in decision making processes. However, several larger populists group such as UKIP do not want to join forces with parties such as FN and SYRIZA and they find their views too extremist.

The rise of the Eurosceptics: (From left to Right) – Marine Le Pen, French MEP and far right Front National Leader; Nigel Farage, British MEP and far right UKIP leader; Alfred Sant, Maltese MEP elected on a socialist ticket but with alleged eurosceptic and self proclaimed eurorealist tendencies

Malta and the EP elections

Malta has also experienced such a shift in voting regimes, with far right Imperium Europa doubling its votes (so far) from the 2009 elections. Candidates from this party will not be elected, but a shift of 17,000 plus votes to periphery parties from Malta’s usual two main parties is a considerable change.

The issue with the Maltese EP results is the election of Alfred Sant, an ex-Prime Minister who campaigned vociferously against EU accession, going as far as claiming that the ‘yes’ win was not true and that his party had won the referendum. Sant’s ideology is more closely aligned to eurosceptic parties, similar to how Farage and La Pen speak out against the EU “one-size-fits-all” policy, so one wonders how his presence in the S&D group will be greeted. Sant considers himself to be a euro-realist, but this dogma is in itself not characteristic of the S&D group, but of the ECR group (European Conservatives and Reformists), made up mainly of the British Conservative Party.

It is sad to see how the Maltese electorate went out in droves to vote for Sant, without realising that they are effectively electing a candidate that does not fit the bill of a true European socialist. After personally witnessing how passionately S&D president Hannes Swoboda spoke about the future of the EU with the next Commission presidency at the European Business Summit, will Swoboda welcome Sant to the fray with open arms?

Alfred Sant advocated for Malta to not enter the EU, and even won the 1996 general election with the pledge to withdraw Malta’s application to the EU. Socialist or eurosceptic? (Photo credit: MaltaRightNow)

My greatest concern with the 2014 EP elections in Malta is the interpretation of the 48,739 first count votes (18.9% of votes cast) which Sant received. Since the Maltese PM stated that this win for the Labour Party is to be interpreted as a vote of confidence in the Labour government, should we also possibly interpret it as a vote of confidence in Alfred Sant and his eurosceptic ideology? If Alfred Sant decides to run as an independent one day or set up his own party, and get elected to the EP, how will that affect the Maltese political landscape?

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The next five years will definitely provide an uphill struggle for the main pro-European political parties, irrespective of their majority in the Parliament. The pronounced presence of the eurosceptics and the alarming presence of neo-nazis will surely make plenary sessions very heated, and will push controversial subjects such as immigration and austerity measures to the forefront of the agenda. One also wonders how long it will take for Alfred Sant to defer from the S&D group before his eurosceptic or self-professed eurorealist nuances surface.

 

Exiting the EU: an upcoming British environmental disaster

The past couple of months have seen a surge in fresh anti-EU discussions across British media. While the seemingly strained relationship between the UK and the EU is relatively mainstream news, the recent vociferous hatred spewed by some British MPs towards the EU is overshadowing some valid points: should Britain leave the EU, what impact will this have on the environment and other social dimensions that drive the country?

Photo credit: Rainer Hachfeld

It is quite undeniable that through the course of EU membership, the UK has managed to increase the conservation of wildlife and habitats and also reduce pollution to provide a better quality of life for people in the country. As argued by a recent article in The Guardian, experts conclude how an exit from the EU would not reap as many ‘green’ benefits when compared to the promised economic ones:

“An analysis for Friends of the Earth, published today by the EU policy expert Dr Charlotte Burns from the University of York, provides a damning critique of UK environmental performance over decades, and highlights the huge risks of EU withdrawal”.

Such a statement, I feel, also resonates exceptionally with other European countries including Malta. As cynical as it may seem, I firmly believe that no single country would willfully implement environmental changes – especially those which are detrimental to business and GDP. Having an institution such as the EU to regulate these laws is crucial towards their implementation. If you think about it, politicians and NGOs alike throw the terms ‘EU law’ and ‘EU policy’ quite freely as they actually carry significant weight. Should the EU seal be removed, what is there left to stop a country from mounting a catastrophic assault on its natural resources?

The European Otter (Lutra lutra), one of the numerous species in the UK benefitting from the EU habitats directive (Photo credit: mape_s)

Historically, the UK has seen far worse days from its current green and luscious pastures. It had the highest levels of sulphur dioxide emissions for any European country, which travelled atmospherically north and reaped havoc on Scandinavian forests through acid rain. Seas and rivers (especially the Thames) were discharge sites for untreated waters, culminating in heavily polluted drinking waters.

The British approach to the environment

Something which I personally learnt across my recent studies is how British politicians mitigate environmental issues. They use the excuse of ‘scientific facts’ to provide public assurance, in order to defer from reaching a solution and often take action only when irreparable damage has been done. This can be historically exemplified by:

The 2,4,5-T case – Herbicides which where scientifically proven to be safe for public use in the UK, albeit being banned in the US, Canada and the former Soviet Union. This chemical was allegedly responsible for causing chloracne, birth defects, spontaneous abortion and cancer. Many farmworkers incurred such diseases, but the government never backed down as it trusted the ‘science’ more than the peoples’ voices. This herbicide was never banned in the UK, but have since become heavily regulated and its effects thusly reduced.

The BSE (mad cow disease) case – A very prominent story of our generation. The British government stalled decisions on this issue for years, with then agriculture minister John Gummer famously feeding his four-year old daughter a hamburger to publicly assure that British beef was scientifically tested and safe to eat. Needless to say, people who lived in the UK between 1980 and 1996 for more than six months cannot give blood as this carries the risk of transmitting the human form of mad cow disease – a classic double  EPIC FAIL with cheese!

In 1990, John Gummer famously ate a beefburger with his daughter Cordelia in front of the press at the height of the mad cow disease scare. These were the tactics employed by British MPs when such environmental issues gained public attention.

The EU does not follow such a science-based approach to the decision making process. Instead, it adopts the precautionary principle which dictates that policies are enacted if there is a suspected risk of causing harm to the public or the environment, unless otherwise scientifically demonstrated. This is what happened to the recent banning of neonicotinoids, which were suspected of causing harm to bees (oh, and BTW the UK was against the ban of these chemicals since not enough scientific testing had been carried out…).

This different approach to environmental policy making, pioneered by the more progressive Scandinavian countries, the Dutch and the German, has resulted in the UK having safer drinking water, cleaner bathing waters and cleaner air. I also have to mention the importance of key transnational directives, such as the EU habitats directive, the bathing water directive and the EU Birds directive, which provide a vital framework for the protection of wildlife and habitats. There is also the European Commission, that has historically lambasted Westminster when these Directives were not upheld (something which Malta may learn very soon as well, hopefully).

British holiday destinations such as East Looe at the south Cornish resort of Looe (above) have failed to meet the water quality standards as set by the EU. This means that if such beaches are not cleaned up, from 2016 onwards they will be required to put up danger signs to warn people not to swim – imagine a scenario where this will not be enforced anymore? (Photo credit: Karen Roe)

Should the UK leave the EU, these directives would all hastily go out the window much to the detriment of the British public. Even while still within the EU, the UK keeps opposing environmental policies on account of them not being scientifically rigorous. Thankfully, more forward thinking countries are in favour of such laws (from the bees, to green energy, to sustainable use of resources), so countries like the UK can be steered in the correct environmental direction.

As an EU citizen living in UK, I am first to comment on how much animosity is felt by the British towards the EU. My personal experience has shown me that this aversion is quite frankly cultural, as the British want to stand on their own two feet and not be bogged down by the EU. As I have been told numerous times, ‘you Europeans’ (since the British do not feel as such) cannot understand the ‘horrors’ of being part of the EU. Countries like Malta and other smaller economies obviously benefit from the EU at the expense of bigger economies such as the UK.

While I am not an economist and cannot comment freely on this issue, it is quite clear that the British environment would suffer under the singular management of a narrow-minded and scientifically-driven government.

The key players in the UK’s EU membership debate: Former Conservative Chancellor Lord Nigel Lawson (left), current British Prime Minister David Cameron (Centre), MEP for the UK and leader of UKIP, UK Independence Party Nigel Farage(Right). Can these men or their successors be trusted to maintain the current environmental standards in the UK?