Czech foreign minister says National Front poll is warning

Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs Lubomír Zaorálek has warned that the triumph of the National Front in the first round of French regional elections is a warning for Europe and the Czech Republic. The minister said that the victory showed that Europe could not put off taking basic steps which would counter the surge in support for the far right, which was the mounting concern about the immigration problem. Citizens would shift support to extremist parties if traditional democratic ones did not come up with solutions for their concerns about security, Christian Democrat leader Pavel Bělobradek told journalists on Monday. The National Front took the most votes in the first round of voting in regional elections with 30 percent of the total, beating the centre-right Republicans into second place and the governing Socialists into third.

Author: Chris Johnstone