In the biggest rally for Catalan independence ever, an estimated crowd of 1.5 million people flooded the city of Barcelona with red-and-yellow striped flags on Catalonia’s national day, the Diada. Tax…
Over summer, the US has been dry and hot. It’s not alone.
EPA/Larry W Smith
The 2012 northern hemisphere summer, like its two predecessors, has seen a wide range of climate extremes, many involving heat. In most recent summers there has been at least one part of the world with…
Linking Australia’s emissions trading system to Europe’s will mean our carbon price and policy will rely on the European economy, experts say.
AAP
Carbon trading without a floor price is “second best policy” that will see Australian carbon prices tied to the European economy says John Daley, chief executive officer of public policy analysis group…
Asylum seekers arrive in Malta after being rescued at sea.
EPA/Justin Gatt
You wouldn’t know it by listening to Question Time, but Australia is not the only country experiencing asylum seekers arriving by boat. Italy and Malta find themselves on the frontline of policing external…
Generation Nothing: Spanish protestors against austerity in Cadiz.
Aleksandra Hadzelek
This week marked the first anniversary of the 15-M movement, a precursor of Occupy movements worldwide. 15-M again mobilised its supporters for a 4-day long program of street protests culminating in a…
German chancellor Angela Merkel and France’s new President Francois Hollande meet to discuss Europe’s economic woes.
EPA/Rainer Jensen
Europe is in economic dire straits and the two most powerful economies on the continent are, at least on paper, led by individuals with considerable differences. The previous French President Nicolas Sarkozy…
Francois Hollande will struggle to consolidate his left-wing base and tackle Europe’s economic woes.
AAP/Ian Langsdon
France went to sleep last weekend knowing that almost a fifth of those who felt compelled to vote in the first round of the presidential election chose a party formed on an openly neo-fascist platform…
Nicolas Sarkozy will seek another term as President of France this Sunday.
EPA/Christophe Karaba
The first round of the French Presidential election is set to take place this Sunday. The latest polls show that right-wing president Nicolas Sarkozy and his centre-left contender François Hollande are…
Demonstrators in front of Standard & Poor’s credit rating agency offices in Paris 15 January 2012.
AAP
For decades, credit ratings agencies were largely ignored by the masses, but in recent months they have continued to hit the headlines again and again. The big three (Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and…
Crowds in Prague mourn the passing of former President and national hero Vaclav Havel.
AAP/Singer
Václav Havel has died aged 75. A poet and playwright, a political writer, dissident and a politician, Havel was the tenth and last President of Czechoslovakia, and the first President of the Czech Republic…
British Prime Minister David Cameron can’t escape domestic politics when it comes to Europe.
EPA/Olivier Hoslet
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s decision to veto the new European Union agreement for greater financial stability in the Eurozone reminds us that despite the talk of greater European integration…
Treasurer Wayne Swan is maintaining a slimmed down surplus for 2012-2013 - but storm clouds are rolling over the global economy.
AAP
The Federal Government is still aiming to deliver a slimmed down surplus next financial year, but has downgraded economic growth forecasts amid a slowing world economy and news that Europe may already…
Mussolini made the trains run on time. But having a strong leader is risky.
Flickr/Galaxy FM
“If I Ruled The World” was a tune made famous decades ago by English comedian and singer Harry Secombe who sang of making every day the first day of spring as well as other miraculous improvements. It…
Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy must take drastic steps to maintain the legitimacy of EU institutions.
AAP
The European Union is in crisis – yet again. If you enter “Europe in crisis” into Google, more than 655 million entries pop up. Europe’s current problems are being described as a Euro crisis – it is a…
The Greek Prime MInister is on the way out, but the new government has a lot of work still to do.
AFP/Aris Messinis
The Greek Prime Minister will resign in an effort to save the bailout deal agreed by the European Union to dig the country out of its debt crisis. George Papandreou agreed to go following talks with the…
Martin McGuinness’ candidacy for the Irish Presidency calls for voters to look to the country’s history.
EPA/Paul McErlane
The critical importance of the Irish presidency was underscored by current incumbent in an address to the Global Irish Economic Forum earlier this month. President Mary MacAleese welcomed 270 delegates…
French President Nicolas Sarkozy should be worried about the upcoming elections.
EPA/Yoan Valat
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has a tight fight on his hands. He’ll be taking on the Socialist Party’s Francois Hollande in the elections next year. And he could struggle to get a second term. Four…
15-M started in Spain, but it has sparked protests around the globe.
EPA/Jesus Diges
This weekend Spain will see the return of its “revolution”. Those involved in the 15-M movement will once again take to the streets en masse to demand urgent reforms. Under the motto “united for a global…
Greeks protest the austerity measures put in place during the ongoing debt crisis.
AAP
Europe is in crisis once again and this time it is deadly serious. At stake is not only the survival of the European currency, but also of the entire integration project. Collapse of the Euro could trigger…