September last year: the according to some right-wing extremist Giorgia Meloni wins the elections in Italy. In the same month, the right wins the elections in Sweden, the country that was just known as the left. Just last week, there was talk of a ‘pull to the right’ in Spain’s elections, when the Socialists were overtaken by the right-wing Partido Popular.
In short, it is often the right that rules the roost in Europe. But not in the next three countries.
Germany: Left in trouble
First of all our eastern neighbours. In 2021, the era of Angela Merkel, of the Christian Democrats (CDU), came to an end. Her successor’s campaign was widely criticized and so other parties benefited. A coalition was formed with the social democrats of the SPD as the largest party. Olaf Scholz became the new, left-wing Chancellor. This is Scholz:
But to get straight to the point: Scholz and his SPD have anything but an easy political life. The coalition is under heavy pressure and in the polls, yes there is the term again, ‘a tug to the right’. The success in those polls of the right-wing radical Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is particularly striking.
“You should see Germany as an oil tanker,” says correspondent Jeroen Akkermans. “Politically, many Germans often go for the middle. Both the SPD and the CDU are seen as people’s parties, as great battleships that kept their course and prevented extremism from encroaching on the political spectrum. But that course is increasingly under pressure, especially from the right. There are four reasons for that.”
The first is the war in Ukraine. “Germany never really wanted to supply arms to countries in conflict, but that has now completely turned around. Germany is the largest arms supplier to Ukraine, after the US,” says Akkermans. “That goes too fast for a lot of Germans. Certainly in East Germany there is still some sympathy for Russia and there you see that the AfD is on the rise.”
“There is also increasing criticism of the number of migrants entering Germany and the outlook for the economy is not good. In addition, there are troubles within the coalition about climate control. For example, the Greens want something different from the SPD,” says Akkermans.
All these points do not make it any easier for the SPD. Not even for the CDU, says Akkermans: “This party is at the top of the polls with 25 to 28 percent of the vote, but is still doing worse than under the leadership of Merkel or Helmut Kohl. The CDU is not benefiting from the problems at The SPD. A kind of vacuum has been created, which the AfD has jumped into. Although the AfD still has to prove it all, the party has never had government responsibility.”
Denmark: Right-wing policy by left-wing government
Also a bubbling pull to the right in Germany, but what about in Denmark? Since 2019, the social democratic Mette Frederiksen has been Prime Minister of the country. So a left-wing leader, but she does not always implement left-wing policies. In fact, when it comes to migration, hardly any Western European country is as strict as Denmark.
In the country, asylum seekers must give up possessions worth more than 10,000 euros to help pay for their own shelter. In addition, Denmark is sending back some Syrians because it considers parts of Syria safe. The Scandinavian country also wants a maximum number of non-Western immigrants in poorer neighbourhoods.
“Danes are right-wing on migration and these positions and plans were the opportunity for the left to win the elections in 2019,” Rune Stubager, professor of political science at Aarhus University, told RTL Nieuws. “Smaller left-wing parties go with the social democrats because they would rather have policies they disagree with from a left-wing party than a government of right-wing parties.”
Portugal: The left is 20 years behind
So while Denmark is actually not really left-wing, the government of Portugal is. The socialists are in power there. But, says correspondent Richard Hogenkamp: “It’s a bit old-fashioned on the left. It’s about themes that feel like 20 years ago to others.”
“Portugal is a poor country. More than 22 percent of Portuguese live below the poverty line. New left-wing themes that you see in Spain, for example, with transgender laws and women’s rights, Portugal is not ready for that. of the month financially.”
In addition, the left-wing government occasionally appears to be pursuing right-wing policies in the economic field. “Paying with crypto coins is untaxed and inheritance tax does not exist in Portugal either. Rich crypto boys and retirees can therefore enjoy life to the fullest. Normally you would think that a left-wing government would do something about it,” says Hogenkamp.
“The same applies to the housing shortage. The average age that a child leaves the parental home is 33 in Portugal, the highest in all of Europe. This is partly culturally determined, but it is also because young people have difficulty affording houses. The government is not doing anything about it.”
Yet these problems seem to ensure that young people stay at home when voting is allowed. In the last election, the turnout was only 51 percent. So they don’t vote for another party out of protest.”
“Portugal is not the largest country of arrival for migrants and certainly not a destination for asylum seekers. Migration is therefore not a hot topic here. The Portuguese, for example, do not talk about the slavery past. In other countries, such topics are often something that parties on the flanks have an opinion on. have, but those parties are not there in Portugal because those subjects are not there,” says Hogenkamp. So the left is still in power.
2023-07-29 15:06:02
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