I am president of the Socialist International. This is not a controversial statement in Europe. But until recently, when I introduced myself thusly to Americans, the response tended to be shock and awe. Although our organization has 170 member parties on all five continents, including many currently in government, evidently socialism was a dirty word. Thankfully, this is no longer the case. The fact that President Barack Obama was elected, despite being branded a socialist by the Republicans, demonstrates how far Americans have come in accepting the need for a more socially just alternative to hard-nosed capitalism.

Yet many of the measures taken in both the United States and Europe to bail out failed banks and shore up ailing industries seem designed to perpetuate a global financial system that is both politically corrupt and morally bankrupt. Fixated on saving the banks, governments are paying little attention to the people who are losing their homes and jobs, their savings and their pensions, as a result of financial decisions beyond their control. The failure of governments to enforce effective regulation of the corporate giants and banking elites has undermined the integrity of our democracies. No wonder taxpayers feel outraged: they’ve inherited trillions of dollars of bad debt, while bankers walk away with millions of dollars of personal wealth.

“Rescue socialism” won’t work if it doesn’t go beyond quick-fix measures. The challenge for progressive politicians is to guide our citizens from despair to hope. We can only restore confidence if we create more democratic institutions that better reflect and respond to the realities of the 21st century. Solving this financial crisis is not a matter for technocrats. It is a fundamentally political issue. We need better governance, not just better financial regulation. This is not just about redistributing wealth–it’s about taking responsibility. Socialism is perfectly placed to fill this leadership vacuum, because we can provide an effective antidote to the excesses of globalization.

In response to Ehrenreich and Fletcher’s question: “Do we have a plan, people?” The answer is: yes, we do. In the Socialist International, we are engaged in a deliberative process to set in motion a new, green model of economic governance that supports sustainable development. In September, we set up a Commission on Global Financial Issues, chaired by Nobel Prize-winner Joseph Stiglitz and composed of political leaders, ministers and experts from around the world. Our goal is to guarantee that markets serve people, not vice versa. To this end, we are calling for greater financial transparency, more robust regulation, the closing of tax havens, and the creation of a World Finance Organization to enforce global standards. We have set out concrete initiatives, including far-reaching reforms of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and World Trade Organization to ensure that emerging economies are properly represented and that developing countries are not starved of credit and funds. While the G-20 framework is a step forward in the search for coordinated global responses, it does not reflect the interdependency of all nations.

The challenge of global governance is immense; but the risks of doing nothing to restore legitimacy to our institutions are greater. If we fail to invest in low-carbon technology and clean up industry, economic recovery will be unsustainable because of runaway climate change. If we fail to democratize globalisation, fundamentalism and populism will surge. If we fail to engage with social problems and address people’s sense of powerlessness and injustice, we will see more violent protests, like those that erupted across Greece in December. This prolonged civil unrest is an urgent warning that the right cannot simply go on with “business as usual.”

While I am pleasantly surprised that socialism is back in vogue, I am also mindful that it must be reinvented, too. There is no point in recycling old policies and procedures, or reforming institutions that have repeatedly failed in the past. The time has come to reinvent the rules. Our world has changed, and our policies must reflect the urgency of our predicament.

Environment groups: European Commission off target

Brussels, 10 June 2009 – The environmental record of the outgoing European Commission is worryingly off target, Friends of the Earth Europe and the ‘Green 10’ coalition of leading environmental organisations said today in Brussels as they published an assessment of the Barroso Commission, giving it an overall mark of 4.4/10.

In all, the ‘Green 10’ report examines successes and failures in 12 policy areas that impact the environment, and sets out a checklist for the next Commission.[1] The Green 10 blamed the low score on, among other things, a failure to reform agriculture and fisheries policies, and, more broadly, to propose sustainable economic policies. But there were some positive notes, notably in climate, energy and transport policy.

At a time when Europe is gripped by economic and environmental crises, the environmental groups call on the next Commission to double its efforts over the next five years and put in place policies that benefit the environment and people’s health, and create sustainable economic growth and jobs.

On taking office in 2004, the Barroso Commission got off to a bad start by judging environmental objectives to be inconsistent with the overriding jobs and competitiveness agenda, the report says. But spurred by growing public and media interest in environmental issues in the second half of its term, the Commission belatedly began to strengthen legislation in the fields of climate, energy and transport, thus earning scores of 7/10, 6/10 and 6/10 respectively. The Green 10 report, however, warns that these policies – in particular the EU’s ‘climate and energy package’ – have not delivered the results predicted in the original Commission proposals after being weakened by EU governments. Much more will need to be achieved by the incoming European Commission, say the groups.

The report also finds that the Commission has neglected the protection of nature and disregarded its importance for long-term economic sustainability and the fight against climate change. The report is critical of the Commission for too often giving in to vested interests when legislating on issues affecting agriculture and marine life. In particular, the so called ‘CAP Health Check’ was a missed opportunity to truly reform the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy, the groups say. The Commission only scores 4/10 on agriculture.

Failure to adequately finance ‘Natura 2000’ sites, a network of sensitive protected areas, a poor initial proposal for the new ‘Marine directive’ that failed to address the pressures on the marine environment, and continued support for genetically modified organisms all contributed to another low score of 4/10 on biodiversity policy.

Although polls consistently show that citizens are concerned about the impact that the environment plays on their health, the Commission has only achieved a mark of 5/10 for its health-related policies. The positive outcome of a global mercury ban and proposals to reduce air pollution have been contrasted by internal disagreements over legislation to ban dangerous chemicals.

***

For more information, please contact:

Francesca Gater, Communications Officer for Friends of the Earth Europe:
Tel: +32 2 893 1010 and +32 485 930515 (Belgian mobile)

***

[1] The full report ‘Off target - European Commission 2004-2009 Environmental Progress Report and Lessons for the Next Commission’ can be downloaded here.

The Green 10 are ten of the largest environmental organisations working at EU level. They coordinate joint responses and recommendations to EU decision-makers, to ensure that the environment is placed at the heart of policymaking. Membership of the Green 10 is more than 20 million people.

www.green10.org

The Conservatives will not let the government “off the hook” on the European constitution, Tory leader David Cameron has insisted.

A bill tabled by Mr Cameron would allow for a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

He promised a referendum if he took office before all EU states ratified it, but declined to say what he would do if this happened before a Tory win.

Mr Cameron added that the Conservatives believed in British membership of the EU, but wanted it to be about trade and co-operation “rather than this endless process of building a superstate”.

BBC today

In an interview with BBC One’s The Politics Show, Mr Clarke - the shadow business secretary and one of his party’s most prominent supporters of Europe - said: “If the Irish referendum endorses the treaty and ratification comes into effect, then our settled policy is quite clear that the treaty will not be reopened.”

The centre-right has come out on top in Europe after EU elections marked by a record low turnout and harsh lessons for ruling parties in some countries.  
 
The European People’s Party delivered a heavy blow to the Socialists and will remain the main group in parliament. The conservatives have strengthened their ability to set the agenda in the assembly that passes many of the European Union’s laws and its budget.
  
Results show the centre right as an overall winner in the European Parliament elections, set to gain 263 out of the parliament’s 736 seats.
The Socialist grouping the PSE gains 161 seats.
The alliance of Democrats and Liberals wins 80 seats and the Greens, coming fourth, have 52 seats.
 
The governing centre-right groups won in Germany, France, Poland and Italy, and Green parties did well on a bad night for the Socialists, who failed to cash in on widespread discontent with Europe’s handling of the global economic crisis.  
Turnout was 42.85% percent, a record low. Results showed ruling parties beaten or heading for defeat in some of the countries worst hit by the crisis — Britain, Ireland, Latvia, Greece, Hungary, Bulgaria, Spain and Portugal.

…….

More on  EURONEWS

These updated predictions (after the launch on 7 April 2009) use new polling data and up-to-date information about which parties and coalitions will be standing in the elections. A new section has also been added to the website, on the overall analysis page, on the possible effect of low voter turnout on the predictions. The predictions will be updated every two weeks until the elections on 4-7 June.

Executive Summary

The European People’s Party will be the largest group in the new European Parliament, with approximately 262 seats, which is a decrease in percentage terms, from 37% to 35% of the MEPs. The Socialist group will win approximately 194 seats, which is a decrease in percentage terms too, from 27% to 26% of the MEPs. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) will secure approximately 82 seats.

The new European Parliament will be more fragmented than the current one, with more seats for smaller parties. A new European Conservative group, composed of the British Conservatives and their allies, may be the fourth largest group, with about 53 seats. The Greens (G/EFA) are likely to be the fifth largest group, with about 50 seats (up from 43). There will be approximately the same number of anti-European and Extreme Right MEPs (about 52 in total) in the new Parliament as in the current Parliament, but this will be a slight increase in percentage terms because of the reduction in the overall size of the Parliament.

The combined forces of the centre-right will continue to be large the centre-left: with about 43% for the centre-right and 39% for the centre-left, compared to 42% for the right and 38% for the left in the previous parliament.

On the basis of our predicted make-up of the next European Parliament, José Barroso has a good chance of being re-elected as Commission President. However, this assumes that the Liberals (ALDE) would back an EPP-Conservative coalition in support of Barroso, which is not a foregone conclusion. An alternative “progressive” coalition, of Liberals, Socialists, Greens, and Radical Left MEPs could still block Barroso’s re-election.

Note: The total number of MEPs will fall from 785 in the current European Parliament to 736 in the new European Parliament elected in June.

More on www.Predict09.eu

*Compare with earlier data below:

Dear [--]

Yesterday Ray Collins and Alicia Kennedy emailed you to ask for your help in paying for our final leaflets of this election campaign.

I have been humbled by your response. You raised more than we’ve ever raised online in 1 day before.

Also humbling is the fact that hundreds of members from across the country have used the virtual phone bank during this campaign to make over 20,000 phone calls to target voters.

And the thousands of you who have turned out week in week out to deliver leaflets and knock on doors for Labour.

And I know that you have done all of this in spite of the fact that you feel angered and frustrated about the events of the last few weeks.

As I’ve spoken to members at campaign events across the country you’ve told me why – because you know that despite all of the frustrations we still need to be out there making the case for Labour because on every choice, our Party’s values put us on the right side of the argument while the Tories find themselves hopelessly wrong.

On the economy our commitment to investing to grow our way out of the recession – by helping people keep and find jobs - is opposed by a Conservative Party that believes that cuts and leaving people to fend for themselves is the answer.

On public services, while we see the need to invest in lower NHS waiting times, in extra nursery places and in guaranteeing places in education, training or apprenticeships, the Conservatives see only budgets to be cut.

And on crime, housing and Europe, our commitment to be tough, to help those in need and to engage to get the best deal for Britain are met with the same old Tory responses.

I don’t think there has ever been a time when the choice between our Party and our opponents has been clearer or more important.

So as you continue to make this choice clear to voters on the doorstep tomorrow and beyond please know that I am so grateful for all that our members do for our Party – you are the lifeblood of our Party and yet again you have not let us down.

Thank you

Gordon

Great idea!

Newsmap is an application that visually reflects the constantly changing landscape of the Google News news aggregator.

A treemap visualization algorithm helps display the enormous amount of information gathered by the aggregator. Treemaps are traditionally space-constrained visualizations of information. Newsmap’s objective takes that goal a step further and provides a tool to divide information into quickly recognizable bands which, when presented together, reveal underlying patterns in news reporting across cultures and within news segments in constant change around the globe.

Newsmap’s objective is to simply demonstrate visually the relationships between data and the unseen patterns in news media.

Google News automatically groups news tories with similar content and places them based on algorithmic results into clusters. In Newsmap, the size of each cell is determined by the amount of related articles that exist inside each news cluster that the Google News Aggregator presents. In that way users can quickly identify which news stories have been given the most coverage, viewing the map by region, topic or time. Through that process it still accentuates the importance of a given article.

Newsmap also allows to compare the news landscape among several countries, making it possible to differentiate which countries give more coverage to, for example, more national news than international or sports rather than business

Currently, the internet presents a highly disorganized collage of information. Many of us are working in an information-soaked world. There is too much of everything. We are subject everywhere to a sensory overload of images, bombarded with information; in magazines and advertisements, on TV, radio, in the cityscape. The internet is a wonderful communication tool, but day after day we find ourselves constantly dealing with information overload. Today, the internet presents a new challenge, the wide and unregulated distribution of information requires new visual paradigms to organize, simplify and analyze large amounts of data. New user interface challenges are arising to deal with all that overwhelming quantity of information.

Monday 1 June 2009 - People around the world will unite for the planet on 5 June for World Environment Day 2009, with a strong call for environmental action just six months before the crucial United Nations climate change talks in Copenhagen.

This year’s theme is ‘Your Planet needs You! Unite to combat climate change’ - a topic that reflects everyone’s individual responsibility to protect the planet, as well as the urgency for nations to agree on a new climate change deal in December.

World Environment Day is truly a People’s Day: it is the chance for everyone, young and old, with their community or with close friends, to show that they care for the planet.

This year’s host is Mexico, reflecting the country’s growing role in the fight against climate change - with its increasingly strong participation in global carbon markets, its massive tree planting campaigns and its natural resource management.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “On this World Environment Day. I encourage all people to take concrete steps toward making the planet greener and cleaner. Switch off the lights. Take public transportation. Recycle. Plant a tree. Clean up your local park. Hold corporations responsible for their environmental practices. And urge your government representatives to Seal the Deal in Copenhagen.”

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said: “I am delighted that Mexico and its people will be the 2009 global hosts of the annual United nations celebrations on 5 June under the theme ‘Your Planet Needs You! Unite to Combat Climate Change’. Mexico is among a group of nations showing real leadership on the challenges of our age - from climate change to bringing environmental goods and services into the mainstream of national and international economics.”

World Environment Day is a truly global event, and as such it will be celebrated on every continent - from remote villages to sprawling capitals. Here are some of the highlights of this year’s celebration.

Celebrations in Mexico

Mexico, the host country, will organize a series of events in Quintana Roo, in the Yucatan Province. Highlights include a conference on the Green Economy with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mexico’s Environment Secretary Juan Elvira Quesada, and Achim Steiner, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

There will also be photo exhibits, an art competition, a Maya ‘Healing the Earth’ ceremony, and a Symphonic Visual Concert entitled ‘The Shield of Nature’ by the Philharmonic Choir and World Heritage Orchestra.

‘HOME’ movie premieres around the world

The global premiere of the new film ‘HOME’, by world-renowned photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand, will be one of the major worldwide events taking place for World Environment Day, with more than 100 locations around the world. Screenings - including star-studded premieres at the Eiffel Tower and in New York City’s Central Park - will be free of charge, and the film will also be available for free download on YouTube.

Using the stunning aerial footage that is Arthus-Bertrand’s trademark, the film - shot in more than 50 countries - makes an urgent appeal for our planet in peril and all its treasures, arguing that we have barely ten years left to reverse its destruction.

Climate Heroes

Another highlight of this year’s WED is the launch of the Climate Heroes project. This UNEP initiative supports individuals who are undertaking exceptional personal feats, high-profile expeditions, and other acts of environmental activism to demonstrate their commitment and to raise awareness for the simple idea that ‘Your Planet Needs You’.

The Climate Heroes include

· Roz Savage, who is rowing across the Pacific Ocean to inspire people to take action on CO2 levels by walking more and driving less;

· Charles and Sho Scott of Ride Japan, a father-and-son team cycling through Japan to raise environmental awareness;

· David de Rothschild, who is building a boat out of recycled plastic to cross the Pacific and visit the Pacific Garbage Patch and raise awareness of the gigantic problem of waste and overconsumption;

· Chinese environmental photographer Luo Hong who is currently staging a major exhibit at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, and whose Luo Hong Environment Foundation trains and rewards youth worldwide working in environmental protection;

· And Project Kaisei, a team of innovators who are studying how to capture waste in the ocean, detoxify it, and recycle it into diesel fuel.

More Climate Heroes will come on board in the next few months.

North American celebrations in Omaha

Omaha (Nebraska) has been selected as North America’s host city for WED 2009, in a reflection of the city’s commitment to environmental and sustainability issues. During the period between Earth Day on 22 April and World Environment Day on 5 June, events throughout the community have been highlighting resources, initiatives and methods that promote low carbon economies and lifestyles, such as improved energy efficiency, alternative energy sources, forest conservation and eco-friendly consumption.

The city will also hold its own premiere of the film ‘HOME’, and youth events will include an award ceremony for the North American winners of the International Children’s Painting Competition and an interactive environmental workshop for Omaha students.

Around the world

Thousands of other activities will take place around the world for WED - here is just a taste of some of the initiatives:

- Tree plantings around the world: WED 2009 will see a wave of tree planting around the planet as part of UNEP’s Billion Tree Campaign, which aims to see 7 billion trees planted by the end of 2009. New partners who have recently come on board include the Scout Movement and the UN’s Department of Peacekeeping Operations. Tree plantings will range from the massive to the local, with 20,000 mangroves to be planted in Keddah (Malaysia) as well as small-scale plantings by communities around the world, from Sierra Leone to India.

- Twitter campaign: UNEP will plant one tree for every person who follows its new Twitter page www.twitter.com/UNEPandYou by 5 June.

- Youth video conference: A videolink will unite youth across three continents - in Nairobi, New York, Panama and Vienna - to discuss their role in promoting awareness and actions on climate change.

- Russia: UNEP will sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the organizers of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, whereby UNEP will advise the Olympic organizers in their efforts to green the Games - including issues like sustainable transport, renewable energy, ecosystems management, and green procurement among others.

- Afghanistan: A neighbourhood clean-up will take place in Kabul on World Environment Day, along with a series of awareness-raising campaigns through schools and mosques.

- Bosnia and Herzegovina: In Sarajevo, the ‘Run to the Hills’ 10-km race will take runners from around Europe up the beautiful forested paths of the Olympic Mountains.

- Nepal: An ‘Ecofootball’ match entitled ‘GOAL-against Climate Change’ will bring together celebrities, politicians and environmentalists, with the aim of raising awareness on climate change and the need for a united response.

- Brazil: An online campaign will call online volunteers to produce, translate and disseminate information and advice on environmentally-friendly lifestyles.

- Kenya: A seafront clean-up will be organized on the island of Lamu with schoolchildren, students, community and government representatives.

- Belgium: The EchoFestival in Brussels’s Royal Park will include a picnic, exhibits, a concert and a fair for a “shared eco-cultural experience”.

- Republic of Korea: 30,000 children will take part in a painting competition on the environment.

World Environment Day 2009 comes just under 190 days before the UN climate convention meeting in Copenhagen. As millions of people around the world prepare to celebrate the event, and in the spirit of the WED slogan ‘Unite to combat climate change’, the UN has launched the Seal the Deal campaign to call for world leaders to agree on a climate change deal that will protect people and the planet.

Notes to editors:

About World Environment Day

World Environment Day (WED) was established by the UN General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.

Commemorated every year on 5 June in more than 100 countries around the globe, World Environment Day is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and boosts political attention and action.

With thousands of events in UNEP’s six global regions including North America, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean and West Asia, World Environment Day is considered one of the largest environmental events of its kind.

For more information on WED 2009, and for a full list of events organized on the day, please visit: www.unep.org/wed/2009

For more information on the Seal the Deal campaign, please visit: www.sealthedeal2009.org

For more information please contact:

Nick Nuttall, Spokesperson / Head of Media, Tel: + 254 20 7623084, Mobile: + 254 733 632755 / +41 79 596 57 37, e-mail: nick.nuttall@unep.org

Anne-France White, Associate Information Officer, on Tel: +254 20 762 3088, Mobile: + 254 738 652793, or e-mail: anne-france.white@unep.org

Shereen Zorba, Information Officer, on Mobile: +254 713601259, or e-mail: shereen.zorba@unep.org

This site allows you to follow EbS programmes live or on demand for up to 7 days following the original transmission in all the languages available at the time of the broadcast.

The schedule provides continually updated information and covers a 3 week period (previous, current and following weeks). The details provided include the time and title of the event as well as the availability of interpretation into other languages. Where appropriate there will also be a shot list, press documentation, relevant internet links and photographic coverage.

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EbS, the European Union’s TV information service, was launched in 1995 and provides EU related audiovisual material via satellite to media professionals. The programming consists of a mix of live events, news items, stockshots on EU policies and issues.

EbS offers:

• Institutional content from the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers, the European Central Bank and other institutions.

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EbS is transmitted using a non-encrypted signal which can be received using easily available equipment. It can be seen in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, east coast of the USA, throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

22:00

16:9

LIVE

European elections 09 - Results

00:00:00

European elections 2009 results (graphics - animations)
EPRef-64019 // European Parliament, Brussels //

Language(s): INT
- National results
- Political parties
- Political groups in the EP
expected end time 23h00

23:00

16:9

LIVE

European elections 2009 - Press conference

00:00:00

European elections 2009 press conference
EPRef-63993 // European Parliament, Brussels //

Language(s): OR EN FR DE IT ES EL PT NL DA FI SV CS ET LV LT HU MT PL SK SL BG RO
Reactions by the EP Political Group leaders

“A new anti-federalist group, made up of David Cameron’s British Conservatives, the Czech Civic Democratic Party (ODS) led by former Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and the Law and Justice Party (PiS) of former Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczyński, was constituted on 30 May in Warsaw. 

The new political group is expected to undermine the mainstream centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), which until now had widely been expected to win the European elections, scheduled for 4-7 June. 

Up to 60 MEPs from the EPP-ED group could join the new formation in the next European Parliament, which will emerge from the elections. 

As a consequence, the EPP may no longer be the biggest political group in the Parliament, handing the reigns to the Party of European Socialists (see ‘Background’). ”