In an appeal to all the mainstream political parties, UEF President Andrew Duff MEP warned of the dangers of rightwing populism and ultra-nationalism unless the campaign for the European Parliament was fought hard.
In a statement today, Duff said:
“In most states of the European Union these elections to the European Parliament are being treated as relatively unimportant. That is a big mistake.
“If the mainstream parties do not fight this election hard, voters will turn away and be tempted to support populist and demagogic parties of the extremes. Low turnout benefits extremists; and the turnout will be low unless national political parties exert themselves, for once, to campaign on and about issues relevant to the future of Europe.
“There is no shortage of European issues relevant to the electorate: the economic crash and the climate crisis to name only two. The logical response to the challenges we face is to strengthen the role and efficiency of the European Union.
“The Treaty of Lisbon is certainly essential. But for the EU to have the capacity to work in the general public interest, the European Parliament has to become more popular. Low turnout means that Parliament’s legitimacy will continue to be questioned by its nationalist opponents.
“This is the time for the main political families to invest heavily in the future of European parliamentary democracy.”
ENDS
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Editors' Note: The UEF, founded in 1947 is a supranational political movement dedicated to uniting Europe along federal lines.
Andrew Duff MEP (UK/Liberal) was elected President of the UEF last year. He also chairs the Parliament's Federalist Intergroup.
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