Irish Labour Party Leader Gilmore Resigns After Rout

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Irish Deputy Prime Minister Eamon Gilmore resigned as Labour leader after a rout in local and European elections wiped out much of the party’s support amid an increase in protest votes across Europe.

Gilmore, 59, said his decision to step down won’t destabilize the coalition government, in power since 2011. The party’s executives will meet today to decide the process of choosing a new leader.

The party paid a “high political price” for policies needed to narrow the budget deficit, Gilmore said in Dublin yesterday. Labour must “hear, heed, and act” after the election on May 23, he said.

Voters punished the coalition last week and rewarded anti-austerity parties including Sinn Fein after enduring years of spending cuts and tax increases. Under a new leader, Labour may seek a reduction in the 2 billion euros ($2.7 billion) of austerity measures planned for 2015.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-27/irish-labour-party-leader-gilmore-resigns-after-rout.html

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1. French Conservatives in Turmoil as Far Right Gains

The leader of France's conservative party is resigning amid a scandal over the financing for former President Nicolas Sarkozy's losing 2012 presidential campaign, officials said Tuesday.

The turmoil comes just as the far-right National Front party emerged on top in French voting for the European Parliament, upending France's political landscape.

Sarkozy's UMP party held a tumultuous meeting Tuesday. Afterward, party members told French television that chief Jean-Francois Cope agreed to resign as of June 15. Three former prime ministers — Francois Fillon, Alain Juppe and Jean-Pierre Raffarin — will assure party leadership until a party congress in October, the members said.

The shakeup was prompted by French media reports saying that a company run by friends of Cope pocketed millions of euros for fictitious or overbilled campaign events during France's 2012 presidential race.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/french-conservatives-campaign-financing-drama-23877974

[factsarenotfair]

2. I just don't understand how any Irish person could wish more suffering on their people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Famine_(Ireland)

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

3. Good. Austerity is the path to poverty.

So many politicians claim that we should be more like businesses, then turn around and want to ignore the idea that you have to invest to grow and prosper.

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4. Nice. nt