EU voting blocs April 25, 2019
Posted by WorldbyStorm in Uncategorized.trackback
With support for anti-EU parties on the right and the left increasing in many parts of Europe, the European Council on Foreign Relations says that the new parliament is likely to be dominated by three major coalition blocs – the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) group, the centre-left block based around the alliance of Socialists and Democrats and what it calls the “anti-European” bloc, comprised of several elements.
As the piece notes any such ‘anti-European’ bloc is likely to be far too disparate to combine usefully. Though stranger things have happened as we all know. There’s food for thought closer to home.
Country-by-country breakdowns of the research show that the think tank reckons that in an election with 11 MEP seats in Ireland (13 seats will be filled if the UK leaves; 11 if not) Fine Gael will win three seats; Fianna Fáil will win two; Sinn Féin two; Independents three; and the Greens one.
Anyone care to make predictions as to who may fill those seats for those formations if the projection is correct? SF surely would be disappointed with 2. The GP ecstatic with 1. It will be telling if the outcomes are close to this.
And then this:
However, the think tank also suggests that for the first time a combined “grand coalition” of the EPP and the left-wing bloc will not have a majority in the parliament, handing a potential king-maker role to a fourth bloc: the centrist Alde group, which includes Fianna Fáil.
That all sounds a lot more exciting that it probably is.
The Cedar Lounge Revolution 
What is an “anti-EU block”? Does that include groups that do not want to spend €13 billion on an EU Army, and increase in defence expenditure to 2% of gdp, in Ireland’s case from .3% to 2% leading to a massive cut in expenditure in health, education and social welfare.
The full support on this issue by the Irish corporate media is to be expected, but I sometimes wonder is Walker Socialism now the dominate value among many on the “left” ?
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Except many of those parties in the right have no seeming problem with NATO even if they are anti EU. And many of us are both anti an EU army while being pro other aspects of the EU and see no reason to pull the whole thing down or exit it short of such an army being established. It’s not all or nothing. As you should know from your own direct experience of remaining in the ILP IIRC until very late in the day. I’d never criticize one for hoping for change or reform or working towards that end until it was absolutely clear no change was possible.
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I can’t see where an Independent would get elected other than Connacht-Ulster, Daly has a chance in Dublin, but is very much an outside prospect. I’d think 4 FG, 4 FF, 3 SF and 1 Independent as more probable for the first 11 seats, with the Greens, Labour and SDs disputing the final two in South and Dublin.
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That’s interesting – I hear very conflicting views on Daly.
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*3 FF.
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As good a thread as any to put this in. I mentioned I have a neighbour a member/ex member of BICO or whatever they’re called now. Well a few doors down from him is a man by the name of Eamon.
I met him on the street this evening, Eamon that is. ‘Anything strange?’ sez he. ‘Divil a bit’ sez I, ‘yourself?’ ‘I’m running in the European election’ sez he.
Eamon Murphy, independent. Some of you may recognize the name. He appears in the media every now and again. Would not be a friend of pretty much anyone on here. He told me he has no money for a campaign but he’s happy that every house will be getting his election letter – he paid for the printing for that.
I’d be kind of hoping that the Blessed Virgin Mary will get an honourable mention or two in his letter.
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“Would not be a friend of pretty much anyone on here.“
Come on Joe, can’t we be friends with conservatives?
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