Ukip leader says he expects party to get most votes in European and local elections 'if our people are motivated' Beaming his Cheshire Cat grin, Nigel Farage was only "reasonably" confident of Ukip's election chances as he cast his own vote in the green-belt village of Cudham, Kent. Having strolled up the leafy lane to the polling station at the pretty flint village school, he posed for photographers...
As we vote, we must remember the advantages of European integration from peace and cooperation to improved living standards, transport and trade It may not always feel like it when we cast our votes, but European elections are a reminder that the 28 member states of the EU have much to be proud of. Indeed, the EU exists because Europeans decided to place war firmly in the past and elevate the common...
As a Lib Dem activist, this may be a difficult round of European elections, but all politicians must respond to people's disengagement They say that the prospect of execution concentrates the mind wonderfully. If you believed the article in the Guardian this morning, which predicted a Liberal Democrat wipe-out in the European elections , my mind as a Lib Dem activist ought to be undergoing the most...
Greek deputy PM Evangelos Venizelos describes the dramatic 2011 crisis summit that nearly forced his country out of the eurozone and outlines the damage that was averted It was a meal where only four of the 14 participants spoke and nobody ate. Seated in front of crystal glasses, the finest porcelain laid out before them, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, and her French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy,...
David Cameron confident that Tories will not turn on one another, while Labour hope for a gain of around 200 seats Westminster's three main parties are bracing themselves for a weekend of inquests as they survey the magnitude of Ukip's long-promised political earthquake and any damage it inflicts to the foundations of three-party politics. The established parties will have to endure a drawn-out agony...
Early results seem to indicate that main parties' worst fears have been realised and Ukip have captured votes all over UK Labour was feeling the first tremors of the Ukip political earthquake as Nigel Farage's surge prevented Labour from making its expected gains and weakened its grip in some of its northern heartlands. Ukip polled more than a third of the vote in wards in big cities, such as Sunderland,...
Stricter cleanliness standards to affect dozens of beaches in England where sewage overflows into the sea Dozens of beaches around England could fail new stricter sewage standards for water quality, including Blackpool, Clacton, Morecambe and Margate. While 90% of the nation's beaches meet cleanliness standards, 46 suffer from sewer overflows, manure running off from farms and badly connected toilets...
Two organisations in the Netherlands have asked volunteers to attend the counting of votes in polling stations while state broadcaster NOS will publish an exit poll this evening. ...
The Danish People's Party is indicating a shift in political allegiance after Sunday's elections. "We want as much influence as possible in order to pull Europe in another direction, namely in the British direction," top-candidate Morten Messerschmidt told DR-TV, naming the UK's Cameron and Dutch premier Rutte as potential partners. ...
The latest opinion polls published in profil , Oesterreich and Der Standard show the conservative People's Party and the Social Democrats head-to-head on 26 percent. The far-right Freedom Party is set to score around 20 percent, while the Greens and the young liberal party Neos oscillate between 10 and 14 percent. ...
Vladimir Sisljagic, an MEP candidate for the right-wing Alliance for Croatia, has been charged with abuse of office by Croatia's anti-corruption office. Sisljagic is accused of receiving backhanders and defrauding the county of which he is prefect, Osijek-Baranja, by some €26,000. ...
The latest published poll by Ispos Puls shows Croatia's centre-right opposition HDZ gaining support over the ruling Social Democratic party, with 30 percent and 24.7 percent respectively. Newly-formed Green party Walnut are on 8.7 percent, the Croatian Labour party 6.7 percent and radical right-wing Alliance for Croatia 5.9 percent. ...
Thousands of workers across the EU are set to see a boost to their holiday pay as a result of a ruling by the EU's top court. ...
Righteous declarations, posturing, a measured amount of fence-sitting and a hefty dose of speculation is to be expected after the EP results come in. ...
With EU voting closed in the Netherlands, an Ipsos exit polls published by NOS put the centre-right CDA in first place (15.4%), the pro-EU Liberal D66 in second (15.3%) and the anti-EU PVV party of Geert Wilders in third place on 12.7%. Turnout was 37%. Final results are due Sunday. ...
German Chancellor Merkel has made conciliatory gestures towards the European Parliament on the choice of the next commission president after Sunday's EU elections. ...
Starting Thursday, voters across the continent are casting their ballots in the European parliament election . Whether you're in Stoke, Salzburg or Sofia, share your images of voting with us Send a tweet to @guardian to set a voting reminder Voting for the European parliament election gets underway on Thursday in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, with Ireland and the Czech Republic taking to...
Jasmine Lawrence quits Twitter as BBC launches investigation into tweet posted the day before local and European elections Jasmine Lawrence, a channel editor at BBC News, has been removed from playing any part in the corporation's coverage of the European and local council elections after tweeting a derogatory comment about Ukip . Continue reading... ...
Industry's over-inflated reserve estimates are unravelling, and with it the 'American dream' of oil independence Next month, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will publish a new estimate of US shale deposits set to deal a death-blow to industry hype about a new golden era of US energy independence by fracking unconventional oil and gas. EIA officials told the Los Angeles Times that previous...
According to a recent Eurobarometer poll , more than half of Europe's young people feel excluded from its economic and social life. We spoke to young people attending an event in Strasbourg ahead of the European elections and asked them to tell us what they think the European Union has done for them Continue reading... ...