Brutal headwinds crush Europe's centre-left heavyweights
James Pheby•October 1, 2016
Veteran radical Jeremy Corbyn last week easily won Britain's Labour Party leadership challenge but political analysts say the venerable party, founded in 1900, faces electoral oblivion despite his victory
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Veteran radical Jeremy Corbyn last week easily won Britain's Labour Party leadership challenge but political analysts say the venerable party, founded in 1900, faces electoral oblivion despite his victory (AFP Photo/Paul Ellis)
London (AFP) - Bitter internal strife, plunging support among voters and surging populism: has there ever been a worse time to be a centre-left party in Europe?
A dozen years ago, left-of-centre giants seemed a natural source of government in many European states.
But today the tally of parties that are declining, sidelined or ideologically adrift is long.
The sick list is headed by Britain's Labour Party, where veteran radical Jeremy Corbyn last week easily won a leadership challenge by centrist MPs angry at his part in the shock Brexit vote.
But political analysts say the venerable party -- founded in 1900 -- faces electoral oblivion despite his victory.
Its dismal standing in the opinion polls is mirrored across Europe.
As with Labour, Spain's Socialist Party is in the grip of a fratricidal war over the performance of its leader, Pedro Sanchez, at a time of national crisis.
In Germany, the Social Democratic Party has lost half its members since 1998.
In France, President Francois Hollande is the most unpopular president in his country's modern history and would be routed if he stands in next year's presidential elections, according to opinion polls.
Centre-left parties recently lost power in Denmark, a stronghold of social democracy, and registered their worst-ever results in Finland and Poland. In Greece, support for the once dominant Pasok has plunged to just six percent.
"Social democracy is a shadow of itself," German political analyst Albrecht von Lucke said on NDR television channel. "We are dealing with decline of historic proportions."
For many commentators, the finger of blame points at globalisation.
They say immigration has become a lightning rod for anger, with older manual workers blaming an influx of foreign labour for job insecurity and lower wages.
"The metropolitan elite think 'great, free movement, we're all multicultural,' but the working class don't really see the benefits and feel threatened by it," says Isabelle Hertner, a lecturer at King's College London.
"The average person doesn't necessarily benefit, just the best qualified people. It's difficult for centre-left parties to bridge that gap."
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