Western Europe marches to the right, but not in step

One by one, governments in the European Union are switching to the right - but don't expect them to start organising international policy summits and leadership lovefests like the left was doing a few years ago.

The trend reinforced by France's centre-right landslide on Sunday should step up pressure for EU action on classic conservative issues like crime and illegal immigration - especially since the far-right is skilfully exploiting them as Jean-Marie Le Pen has shown in recent French campaigns.

But the seemingly common approach is only skin deep, analysts say, and hides more differences than it highlights similarities. Each country is moving right in its own way.

The 11 EU countries now with right-wing parties leading or taking part in government look even less likely to work together in Europe than leftist parties did when they were in 13 of the 15 EU governments, Finnish analyst Esko Antola said.

"Even if they wanted to preserve the power of EU institutions, they would have to look over their right shoulders all the time," the University of Turku professor said.

The rise of the extreme-right, another apparent trend across Europe these days, puts pressure on the new conservative governments - but, again, not in any coordinated way.

"It would be wrong to conclude that a 'Populist International' is emerging in Europe," said Jean Nestor, vice-chairman of the Paris think-tank Notre Europe, founded by Socialist former European Commission President Jacques Delors.

"What we see is the rise of forces opposed to the policies of traditional parties, especially as concerns Europe," he said. "They are less integrationist than earlier governments."

The shift to the right began in February 2000, when Austria's conservative People's Party teamed up with Joerg Haider's far-right Freedom Party to end a left-right coalition.

Since then, left-wing governments have fallen in Italy, Denmark, Portugal and the Netherlands. Germany and Sweden vote in September and both countries' centre-left governments are under threat from the right.

This has certainly changed the atmosphere since the heyday of the European left in the late 1990s, when social democrats and socialists held high-profile seminars to discuss the "Third Way" championed by British Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair.

The leftist tradition of thinking internationally offered a natural backdrop for leaders and "policy wonks" to seek ways to coordinate efforts to create jobs and improve public services.

Traditional Christian democratic parties used to play such a role on the right but "they are disappearing little by little to the benefit of a European right that is more free market and more ready to defend national interests", Nestor said.

"The social democrats put their emphasis on growth and jobs," he said. "These right-wing government will focus more on liberalising markets, especially in public services."

Crime and immigration, two areas where pressure from the far-right is creating a need for EU-wide action, could also provoke common slogans that hide contrasting views.

"There's clearly some growing consensus about the need to combat illegal immigration but European Union members are far from agreeing a comprehensive framework about immigration," said Steffen Angenendt at the German Council on Foreign Relations.

EU foreign ministers on Monday failed to agree on whether to threaten sanctions against Third World countries that did not crack down on economic migrants and people traffickers.

Spain's conservative government, backed up by Germany's centre-left coalition, has pressed hard for the idea. But France's new centre-right leadership opposes it.

Notre Europe's Nestor noted that Britain stood aloof from the right-wing trends moving across continental Europe and suggested politicians elsewhere in the EU could learn a lot from Blair, who was re-elected by a landslide a year ago.

"New Labour is very strong on explaining politics to people," he said. "They speak concretely and pragmatically - not with the great lyrical rhetoric of continental politicians."

Blair ally Peter Mandelson illustrated the approach in an analysis of the French election, writing in London's Times: "We must connect with issues that are disturbing voters and not let vacate space to be occupied by the right."

That was the same message Mandelson delivered to a "Third Way" brainstorming session Blair called 10 days ago with Democratic former US President Bill Clinton to ponder why the centre-left was losing so many elections in Europe.

Reminded that Blair's critics dismiss his public relations as merely deceptive "spin", Nestor replied: "Tony Blair may be a better prophet for Europe than he is for Britain." "