Marine Le Pen's National Front has emerged as clear winners of France's European elections. It was another blow for beleaguered president Francois Hollande, who faced calls from Le Pen to disolve parliament.
Across the EU, Eurosceptics gained ground, winning a fifth of all seats in parliament – enough to shock, but not threaten the pro-EU majority.
http://www.dw.de/french-far-right-dominates-eu-elections/av-17663901
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Ukip has won the European elections, leaving Westminster shaking from the political "earthquake" that Nigel Farage had long predicted
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcInvFBkcg8
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The 18th Century botanist who sailed with Captain James Cook to the uncharted lands of the South Pacific, including Tahiti, New Zealand and Australia is to appear in a film, titled "The Banks Endeavour" to be made in Lincolnshire, London and Australia.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-27341371
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The small print in Labour's policy shows the party is willing to tap into the "political hotpoint" of immigration, Corin Dann says.
http://tvnz.co.nz/breakfast-news/labour-economic-policy-tapping-into-political-hotpoint-immigration-video-5944474
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It was around 7.50 on Thursday morning when it became clear that Thomas Piketty had gone viral. Forget topping the bestseller lists. Forget the praise heaped on him by Paul Krugman. Never mind the hundreds of thousands of times his name is Googled. When Piketty was namechecked on Thought for the Day, he stopped being a modest 42-year-old French economist and went mainstream. In case you haven't noticed, Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century is a publishing sensation. It has already sold 200,000 copies, making it the 50 Shades of Grey of economics books. It is being reviewed on the…Read
New Zealand's population could increase by more than 40,000 people this year, putting pressure on infrastructure and raising house prices.
http://www.3news.co.nz/Immigration-to-be-key-election-issue/tabid/423/articleID/344673/Default.aspx
ReadAustralia has lost its attraction for Kiwis - last month just 200 left for the lucky country, the lowest number ever - but migrants coming to New Zealand have hit the highest figure in more than a decade.
New figures for March 2014 show 4000 more people arrived to live here, than left for life in another country.
That pace hasn't been seen since April 2003 and it takes the annual net migration to over 34,000.
Westpac economists say there's been another drop in departures by New Zealanders to Australia.
The Trans-Tasman flow…Read
Early results on Friday from India's five-week long general election indicated a landslide victory for the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Narendra Modi.
Through his campaign, Mr Modi had vowed to reboot the economy and deliver efficient governance -he said today "development for all" would be his mission.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101678624
ReadThe Bharatiya Janata Party ("Indian People's Party"; BJP) looks set to win the elections, with their controversial leader Narendra Modi in pole position to become the country’s next Prime Minister.
http://time.com/#98029/worlds-largest-election-india/
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Prime Minister, John Key says New Zealanders will welcome the family focus of today's Budget. Finance Minister Bill English delivered an election year Budget which includes a bigger than forecast surplus, free doctors visits for 400,000 more children, and big cuts to ACC levies. It also dangles the prospect of tax cuts in front of voters. Finance Minister Mr English said the Government's much vaunted return to surplus would be $372 million, still slender but well ahead of the wafer thin $86m forecast six months ago, thanks to a rosier economic outlook. (NZ Herald)
Labour leader David…Read
If the exit polls turn out to be accurate when the votes are counted on Friday 16 May, they will point to a dramatic turnaround for the BJP and a massive defeat for the Congress.
An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. Unlike an opinion poll, which asks whom the voter plans to vote for or some similar formulation, an exit poll asks whom the voter actually voted for. A similar poll conducted before actual voters have voted is called an entrance poll.
The…Read
Jamie Whyte has worked as a management consultant, as a foreign currency trader and as a philosophy lecturer at Cambridge University. His philosophical publications in academic journals mainly concern the nature of truth and belief. Whyte’s books and articles typically attempt to expose shoddy reasoning, especially by politicians. His political philosophy is classical liberalism, in the tradition of Friedrich Hayek. Liberalism is a political philosophy or worldview founded on ideas of liberty and equality. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally they support ideas such as free…Read
Campaigning in India’s five-week-long elections came to a close on Saturday with the final polling and election results both due this week. The opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to emerge on top.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-27300232
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India's tea shops are places where people often gather to discuss local politics (a cup of tea is 7 Rupees (INR) which converts to 13 kiwi cents), according to the buzz in the tea-shops, the spotlight is on the fight between Sonia and Rahul Gandhi (Congress Party) on the one side and Narendra Modi on the other and opinion polls say the Modi nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is well ahead and 'riding the wave.' Many commentators have already declared him the future prime minister and hope that if declared the winner on the 16 May, he will:
Sweep…ReadIt is the biggest election in history - and on Wednesday, in the seventh phase of India's general election, 140 million people are eligible to vote in seven states and two union territories.
One of those states is Gujarat - whose Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, is a front-runner to lead the next Government.
TRADE, COMMERCE AND PORTS Since times immemorial, Gujarat has had some of the finest ports in the country. From the ancient maritime hub – Lothal to one of the major ports of textile trade – Surat to the country’s largest…Read