Like London buses, you wait an age for one big consequential European election and then several come along at once.
Up to last week, the continent’s midsummer election spotlight was all on the UK (where the polls still point to a thumping Labour victory on 4 July). But that was before President Emmanuel Macron’s calling of a snap parliamentary vote in France – in light of a strong far right showing in this month’s European elections – which many experts fear could give Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) a real political grip over the country.
So, asks our Europe correspondent Jon Henley, could the far right gain power in France and if so, what would they try to do?
As Jon points out, there is no certainty the RN will win a majority and the likeliest outcome could well be another hung parliament. But either way it looks like France is in for a rough few years.
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Five essential reads in this week’s edition
1
Spotlight | Kharkiv under siege
Luke Harding and Artem Mazhulin report from Ukraine’s second city where living conditions are increasingly precarious
2
Environment | The fight to save Norway’s arctic foxes
Captive breeding has helped reduce threats from predators and the climate crisis – but can the species survive long-term?
3
Feature | The vinyl frontier
John Harris meets the record detectives going after music’s retro bootleggers
4
Opinion | Starmer’s quiet man appeal
The UK Labour leader has been accused of being a “political robot”. But, argues Jonathan Freedland, that’s exactly why he’s so far ahead in the opinion polls
5
Culture | Alive and Kicken
On its 50th anniversary, culture writer Eliza Apperly pays tribute to the Berlin gallery that helped pioneer photography as an art discipline
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What else we’ve been reading
Following the recall of three South Korean instant ramen products by Denmark’s food authority, our Guardian colleagues in Australia had the brilliant idea of gamely taste testing the noodles. The phrase “I have sweaty eyelids!” is going to stay with me. I hope they’ve all since recovered.
Clare Horton, assistant editor
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Other highlights from the Guardian website
• Audio | The Guardian Football Weekly podcast goes daily during Euro 2024
• Video | Anywhere but Westminster: This Labour city backed Brexit and went Tory: what did it get in return?
• Gallery | Bubbling up! Portrait of Humanity prize winners
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