Politicians on the ropes across Union

Politicians in trouble dominate the headlines. In France, the government is “hanging by a thread”, according to Libération, after allegations that Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin tried to drum up corruption charges against Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy. “Will it break or won’t it?” the paper asks. “Or rather, when will it break?”



De Villepin "is now in the worst possible position for a politician", the daily argues, despite him repeatedly denying ordering a probe into his rival. "It is not that he is speaking in order to say nothing, but he is speaking in order not to be heard." Er, comment?

Germany's Berliner Zeitung says the French "soap opera" comes at the expense of essential reforms: "The French cannot turn off their television after half an hour of pleasantly creepy entertainment because they are part of this cruel game."

In Britain, Tony Blair is on the ropes. Switzerland's Le Temps publishes a front-page photo of a smiling David Cameron, leader of Britain's opposition Conservative Party, which thrashed Blair's governing Labour Party in the local elections last week. "David Cameron, the man who threatens Tony Blair," reads the caption.

Then there is Poland. Le Monde greets the new governing coalition of conservatives, populists and far-right nationalists with this headline: "Danger in Poland". The French paper variously refers to individual politicians in the government as "ultranationalist", "homophobe" and "anti-Semite". Some papers might consider these compliments, but Le Monde doesn't.

It fears the rise of a far Right in Poland, comparing the situation to that in Austria after 2000, when Jörg Haider's party joined the government coalition. "Back then, Austria was the object of 'sanctions'," Le Monde recalls. But, today "the EU is saying nothing."

Der Tagesspiegel calls Poland's new government a "cabinet of horrors" and says the country deserves better. The paper laments the appointment of the leader of the League of Polish Families as education minister. It says Roman Giertych is opposed to the EU and "cultivates contacts with the neo-Nazi scene via his party's youth organization".

Finally, there is the question of future EU enlargement, and reports that the European Commission wants to delay the accession of Bulgaria and Romania.

Several papers, including the UK's Guardian, report a warning from Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev that the EU not "humiliate" his country when it rules on whether Bulgaria is ready to join the bloc. He argues that postponing entry would be perceived as outright rejection.

"It would be a mistake," he says, according to the Associated Press. "We are not second-class Europeans. Do not try to humiliate us."

According to the Bulgarian paper Sega, "Romania Worried that Bulgaria Delays Its Entry into EU". The paper quotes Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu saying that his country's problems with the EU membership were coming from Sofia.

  • Craig Winneker is editor of TCSDaily.com