Monthly Archives: June 2012

Lukewarm reception for ride, but a win’s a win for world-beater

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LONDON

THE British press is having a field day in the aftermath of Black Caviar’s close-run win at Ascot on Saturday.
The headlines about “the Wonder from Down Under” — the horse — are now accompanied by sharp criticism of “the Blunder from Down Under”: the way jockey Luke Nolen made a rookie’s mistake and stopped riding close to the finish of the Diamond Jubilee Stakes, almost losing it. In one of racing’s most heart-stopping wins, Black Caviar put on a final burst of speed and put down her head in the last few strides after she had been overtaken by her closest rival, Midnight Cloud. The photo showed she won by a nostril.
Nolen later admitted he had lost the plot part-way through. “I let her idle through the last 200 [metres],” he said, “and I underestimated just how stiff a track this straight six furlongs is, and also the opposition.
“And I shit myself duly. And I’m afraid my brain fade might be talked about more than this mare’s fantastic effort.”
But Nolen also said Black Caviar had not raced to her best.
“She wasn’t taking me to the line. I had to ask her to find it. Yes, I was at fault, but when I relaxed on her — I thought I’d done enough, and that’s an error every apprentice is taught not to do, and I got away with it — that big engine seemed to shut right down,” he said.
“I tried to get her going again in the last strides and it was only her determination when the other horses came to her that kept her in front. She just didn’t bring to the races today what she usually can, and I’m just disappointed that you over here didn’t get to see just how good she is.”
Nolen became the man of the hour for all the wrong reasons. The Times called his misjudgment “calamitous”; the Daily Mail used both “calamitous” and “schoolboy howler”.
The Telegraph suggested the jockey “may well have had to ask for political asylum” had the photo gone the other way. One commentator suggested there might have been a one-off return to the gallows had Australia’s darling been beaten.
There had been great expectations of Black Caviar, who had received an unusually affectionate welcome at Ascot. Many of the estimated 7000 Australians in the 70,000-strong crowd had been issued with “Go Black Caviar” placards and wore ties or caps in her colours.
When Black Caviar first appeared in the pre-parade ring, even trainers not linked to her jostled for positions that would give them a good view and snapped her on their cameras.
While Australia’s national pride might have been dented a little by the fact that she did not sweep grandly to victory, the roar of the crowd at the excitement of the finish — and again at the photo replay — suggested exhilaration rather than disappointment.
Graham Sharpe, of the bookmakers William Hill, told The Independent: “We may have lost a bit on Black Caviar, because at that price [1/6] it is not a horse that many punters would have bet on. [But] it was a great race for horse racing. There may be some people who are keeping their bet slips as souvenirs rather than cashing them in.”
The Independent also had the kindest headline: “Still unbeaten, just. Still a heroine, justly.”
Black Caviar’s trainer, Peter Moody, said the race was always going to be the greatest risk of her career as it came at the end of a long season and a long overseas trip, but “whether she wins by a quarter of an inch or a quarter of a furlong it’s still a win, and they’re not going to give us any more prizemoney . . . She didn’t let us down. She’s done Australia proud, and she’s still undefeated.”First published in The Age.

Heart-stopping Caviar may have raced her last

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LONDON

THE racing world is coming to terms with a moment of madness that almost cost the super mare Black Caviar victory on her biggest stage, England’s Royal Ascot.
A rookie’s mistake by jockey Luke Nolen, in which he stopped riding close to the finish, almost denied her the trophy.
In one of racing’s most heart-stopping wins, Black Caviar put in a final burst and put her head down in the last few strides after she had been challenged by Midnight Cloud. A photo-finish showed she won by a nostril.
Nolen admitted he had lost the plot. “I let her idle through the last 200 [metres],” he said, “and I underestimated just how stiff a track this straight six furlongs is, and also the opposition. And I shit myself duly. And I’m afraid my brain-fade might be talked about more than this mare’s fantastic effort.”
But Nolen felt that Black Caviar had not raced to her best either. “She wasn’t taking me to the line. I had to ask her to find it. Yes, I was at fault, but when I relaxed on her – I thought I’d done enough, and that’s an error every apprentice is taught not to do, and I got away with it – that big engine seemed to shut right down.
“I tried to get her going again in the last strides and it was only her determination when the other horses came to her that kept her in front. She just didn’t bring to the races today what she usually can.”
As she recovered from her exertions, many fans were left asking what was next for the six year-old. Plans to race again in England were quickly abandoned and trainer Peter Moody also raised the possibility that Saturday’s race may have been her last.
Does it matter that she didn’t dominate the field with her usual vigour?
It has left Nolen man of the hour for all the wrong reasons. The Times called Nolan’s misjudgment “calamitous”; the Daily Mail used both “calamitous” and “schoolboy howler”.
Apparently stewards did speak to Nolen after the race to remind him of his responsibilities but he broke no rules.
There had been great expectations of Black Caviar, who had received an unusually affectionate welcome at Ascot. Many of the estimated 7000 Australians in the 70,000-strong crowd had been issued with “Go Black Caviar” placards and wore ties or caps in her colours; one baby held up at the racetrack fence was dressed entirely in salmon pink with black spots.
When she appeared in the pre-parade ring, even trainers not linked to her jostled for a look.
Moody said the race was always going to be the greatest risk of her career as it came at the end of a long season and a long overseas trip but “whether she wins by a quarter of an inch or a quarter of a furlong it’s still a win, and they’re not going to give us any more prizemoney.
“She didn’t let us down. She’s done Australia proud, and she’s still undefeated.”First published in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Ex-Murdoch chief in court

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SHE has tamed that wild mane of red hair. The former chief executive of News International, Rebekah Brooks, yesterday appeared in a London court over charges of perverting the course of justice — with newly reshaped princess-style tresses.
The court was told that Brooks, who faces three counts of conspiring to hide evidence from the Metropolitan Police, would probably learn by the end of August whether she would also face new charges arising from Operation Weeting, the police investigation into phone hacking.
Brooks faces three charges of having conspired to pervert the course of justice by hiding material from the Metropolitan Police Service.
Her barrister, Hugo Keith, QC, said that prosecutors had been passed more Operation Weeting files relating to 11 journalists. “No one is sure whether it will result in charges one way or another,” he said.
He said any further charges would have an impact on this trial and asked that prosecutors say by the end of August whether Brooks could expect more counts. Mr Justice Fulford declined to make an order but said he encouraged the prosecution to do this if possible.
Brooks, who resigned as chief executive of News International last July, is also a former editor of The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World.
She and her husband sat in the dock with four other defendants: Cheryl Carter, Brooks’ former personal assistant; Paul Edwards, Brooks’ former chauffeur; Mark Hanna, the head of security at News International; and Daryl Jorsling, who was a security consultant for Brooks provided by News International. Brooks, 44, is charged on count one that between July 6 and July 19, 2011 she conspired with Charles Brooks, Hanna, Edwards, Jorsling and persons unknown to conceal material from Metropolitan police officers.
On count two she is charged with Carter of conspiring between July 6 and July 9, 2011 to permanently remove seven boxes of material from the archive of News International.
In the third count Brooks is charged with her husband, Hanna, Edwards and Jorsling and persons unknown of conspiring between July 15 and 19 July 19, 2011 to conceal documents, computers and other electronic equipment from Metropolitan officers. The other five defendants face one charge of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice each.
Charlie Brooks faces a charge of conspiring to pervert the course of justice with his wife.
All six defendants will face court again on September 26 for a plea and case management hearing. No trial date was set.

First published in The Age.

Brooks will find out soon about further phone-hacking charges

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LONDON

She has finally tamed that wild mane of red hair. The former chief executive of News International, Rebekah Brooks, yesterday appeared in a London court over charges of perverting the course of justice – wearing her trademark Christian Louboutin spike heels, a slinky black designer dress and newly reshaped princess-style tresses.
The court was told that Brooks, who faces three counts of conspiring to hide evidence from the Metropolitan Police, would probably learn by the end of August whether she would also face new charges arising from Operation Weeting, the police investigation into phone hacking.
Her barrister, Hugo Keith, QC, said that prosecutors had been passed more Operation Weeting files relating to 11 journalists: ‘‘No one is sure whether it will result in charges one way or another.’’ He said any further charges would have an impact on this trial and asked that prosecutors say by the end of August whether Brooks could expect more counts.
Mr Justice Fulford declined to make an order but said he strongly encouraged the prosecution to do this if possible.
Mr Keith had also given the judge a file of press clippings that he said contained evidence of websites and blogs with offensive commentary that could prejudice Brooks’ right to a fair trial: ‘‘I don’t make any application today but I do wish to put down a very gentle marker as to the responsibility of everybody as to the strictures of the Contempt of Court Act.’’ Brooks, who resigned as chief executive of News International last July, is also a former editor of the tabloid Sun and the nowdefunct News of the World.
At times she glanced across the courtroom and studied the reporters taking notes on her case.
She and her husband, Charlie, sat in the glass-caged dock with four other defendants. They are Cheryl Carter, Mrs Brooks’s former personal assistant; Paul Edwards, Mrs Brooks’s former chauffeur; Mark Hanna, the head of security at News International; and Daryl Jorsling, who was a security consultant for Mrs Brooks provided by News International.
Mr Jorsling’s lawyer told the court he had lost his licence to work in the security industry because of the charges and that he could soon lose his home.
James Sturman, QC, said there was no prima facie case against Mr Jorsling and that there would be amove to dismiss the charges.
He asked the judge ‘‘to consider whether it’s in the public interest to render this defendant homeless over the next three months’’.
The judge asked the prosecution to re-examine the case against Mr Jorsling. The prosecutor, Andrew Edis, QC, said they would but that the decision to charge ‘‘had already received very careful consideration and I wouldn’t like anyone to think that it hadn’t’’.
Mrs Brooks, 44, is charged on count one that between July 6 and July 19 last year she conspired with her husband, Mr Hanna, Mr Edwards,Mr Jorsling and persons unknown to conceal material from officers of the Metropolitan Police. On count two she is charged with Ms Carter between July 6 and July 9 last year of conspiring to permanently remove seven boxes of material from the archive of News International.
In the third count Mrs Brooks is charged with her husband, Mr Hanna, Mr Edwards and Mr Jorsling and persons unknown of conspiring together between July 15 and July 19 last year to conceal documents, computers and other electronic equipment from officers of the Metropolitan Police. The other five defendants face one charge of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice each.
Mr Brooks faces a single charge of conspiring to pervert the course of justice with his wife.
All six defendants will face court again on September 26 for a plea and case management hearing. No trial date was set.First published in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Moody’s princess all set for her royal performance

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Newmarket

TRAINER Peter Moody was protective of his princess. Champion Australian racehorse Black Caviar would parade for the media for no longer than two minutes, he barked, and she would be wearing her protective suit to shield her against the weather.
People with umbrellas were to keep their distance. “Umbrellas and racehorses don’t mix!” he warned.
So a dozen reporters and cameramen dutifully stood in driving rain at Newmarket – while Black Caviar dutifully went through her paces – for an update on how the wonder from Down Under was doing before her first big international race at Royal Ascot on Saturday.
Moody said the mare was “the fittest I’ve probably had her in the last 24 months”. The track will be heavy but Moody was not convinced the weather would be: “If we got it wrong as often as the weatherman we would be unemployed. She’s got a great record of producing great tracks.”
Black Caviar has never raced on an extremely soft track but Moody said she had both trained and trialled on them in Australia.
“This track is one of the best rated tracks … I’m not worried at this point … the big concern for us was the travelling aspect and we appear to have overcome that.”
Moody said he was very pleased with her condition: “She’s done everything we asked of her.”
He said she was doing so well that he had to give her “a little bit of work” on Tuesday, even though the original plan had been to avoid heavy training in the run-up to the Diamond Jubilee Stakes.
Thousands of Australians are travelling to Britain to see the big moment. “This is our turn on the world stage,” Moody said. “It’s our Olympics.”
He said the owners should be applauded for their decision to bring her out of her comfort zone and to Ascot.
“These owners have had the balls to put this mare on a plane and bring her three-quarters of the way around the world,” he said. “Imagine having something this good and sharing it with the rest of the world.”
He compared this to British champion Frankel, who he said would never leave British shores.
He said Black Caviar was bold enough to take whatever position she wanted in the race.
“I’d love nothing more than to see her come out and win by 10 or 11 lengths,” he said. But such a performance would be saved for an Australian racetrack.
“The Poms have been using us Aussies as cannon fodder for 150 years so we’re not going to put on a show just for them.”
If she won “by an inch” it would do him, he said.First published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 22 June 2012.

Black Caviar ready to shine like a diamond in the mud

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NEWMARKET

TRAINER Peter Moody was protective of his princess. Champion Australian racehorse Black Caviar would parade for the media for no longer than two minutes, he barked, and she would wear her protective suit to shield her from the weather.
People with umbrellas were to keep their distance. “Umbrellas and racehorses don’t mix,” he warned.
So a dozen reporters and cameramen dutifully stood in driving rain at Newmarket — while Black Caviar went through her paces — for an update on how the five-year-old mare was doing before her first international race in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot tomorrow. Moody said she was “the fittest I’ve probably had her in the last 24 months”.
The track tomorrow will be heavy and Black Caviar has never raced on an extremely wet track, but Moody said she had trained and trialled on them in Australia. “This track is one of the best rated tracks … I’m not worried at this point … the big concern for us was the travelling aspect and we appear to have overcome that.”
Moody said Black Caviar was doing so well he had to give her “a little bit of work” on Tuesday, although the plan had been to avoid heavy training.
Thousands of Australians have travelled to Britain to watch the mare. “This is our turn on the world stage,” Moody said. “It’s our Olympics.”
He said the owners should be applauded for their decision to bring her out of her comfort zone to Ascot. “These owners have had the balls to put this mare on a plane and bring her three-quarters of the way around the world.”
Moody said Black Caviar was bold enough to take whatever position she wanted in the field. It would be great if she won by several lengths, but she would not be pushed to do so.
“The Poms have used Australians as cannon fodder for 150 years … We’re not going to let them put her to the sword.” If she won “by an inch” it would do him, he said.
Asked whether he expected the mare to improve her performance, Moody said: “Five years old, 22nd start … I put the question to you: does she need to?”
Asked by a British reporter if Prime Minister Julia Gillard had sent her best wishes, he joked “she’s one of yours” and might be barracking for a British horse.
But Moody said there had been huge interest from American TV and Asian TV and radio. He hoped Black Caviar would meet the Queen.
Black Caviar’s jockey, Luke Nolen, said he had been stunned by the attention she had received in Britain. “It is in another stratosphere,” he said.
Nolen was in the saddle on Black Caviar on Tuesday.
“I rode her in her last gallop before leaving Australia and she was in good nick then and she is better now,” he said.
“It is a bit different over here but we know how good she is and want her to show it. She seems to have settled in all right but we won’t really know until Saturday. I will take a win by any margin. It would be a long way to come to lose.”First published in The Age.

Black Caviar fever heats up as Aussies flock to Ascot

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Black Caviar will race in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot on Sunday.

Peter Moody was in fine spirits when showing off star mare Black Caviar yesterday.
Star Hawk won’t cop out yet – Page 21Champion Australian racehorse Black Caviar was ”the fittest I’ve probably had her in the last 24 months”, trainer Peter Moody said last night.
The five-year-old mare, who will race in the Diamond Jubilee Sprint at Royal Ascot on Sunday morning Australian time, was paraded briefly before the media at her Newmarket stables, wearing her protective suit to shield her from the driving rain of a soggy British summer.
The track will be heavy but Moody was not convinced the weather would be.
”If we got it wrong as often as the weatherman we would be unemployed. She’s got a great record of producing great tracks,” he said. Black Caviar has never raced on an extremely wet track but Mr Moody said she had both trained and trialled on them in Australia.
”This track is one of the best-rated tracks … I’m not worried at this point … the big concern for us was the travelling aspect and we appear to have overcome that,” he said. ”She’s done everything we asked of her.”He said she was doing so well he had to give her ”a little bit of work” on Tuesday, even though the original plan had been to avoid heavy training in the run-up to the race.Thousands of Australians are travelling to Britain to see the mare in her first international race.”This is our turn on the world stage,” Moody said.
”It’s our Olympics.” He said the owners should be applauded for their decision to bring her out of her comfort zone, comparing that to British champion Frankel, who he said would never leave British shores.
Moody said Black Caviar would take whatever position she wanted on the field and would not be pushed to win by several lengths, saying: ”The Poms have used Australians as cannon fodder for 150 years … We’re not going to let them put her to the sword.” Asked whether he expected the mare to improve her performance, he said: ”Five years old, 22nd start, three-quarters of the way around the world … I put the question to you. Does she need to?”Moody also said there had been huge interest from American TV and Asian TV and radio.
”It’s been unbelievable. They’re all rooting for her,” he said.Late last night, Black Caviar drew the outside barrier in a field of 15, with the draw moving the mare into $1.22 with ACTTAB.
Previous years at Royal Ascot has proven the grandstand side is the place to be late in the carnival.
SUNDAY
Black Caviar races at Royal Ascot in the group1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes. TV time: Live on Prime and TVN at 12.45am.First published in The Canberra Times.

Centre fights to hold Greece

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POLITICAL horse-trading over the next few days will decide the shape of Greece’s next government, as the pro-bailout New Democracy party tries to form yet another coalition to lead the troubled country.
Greek voters provided a breather in the euro crisis by favouring parties that supported the bailout, warding off an immediate crisis in the eurozone. But they also rewarded parties of the radical left and extreme right, marking a new polarisation in political views.
New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras hailed his win as a victory for Greece and Europe: “We will not have new adventure, we will not doubt the position of Greece in Europe, we will not be cowed by fear.”
But he also promised that “we cannot continue to injure every family with government”.
Greece has been crippled by five years of recession and high unemployment, intensified by severe austerity measures imposed as part of a European deal to help it cope with its debt.
Greece’s lenders had insisted the two bailouts, totalling €240 billion ($300.7 billion), be honoured or funds would be cut off, bankrupting Greece and forcing it out of the eurozone.
But Greeks had protested fiercely against the harshness of the measures and a previously obscure party, the radical left Syriza, has sprung to prominence following promises to tear up the memorandum over the bailout. New Democracy won 29.5 per cent. Syriza came a close second, increasing its share of the vote to more than 27 per cent.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel congratulated Mr Samaras and told him she was confident Athens would abide by its European pledges.
Germany has been a major contributor to Greece’s two rescue packages and a key advocate of highly unpopular austerity and reform measures in exchange.
Meanwhile in France, weekend elections gave the Socialists an easy absolute parliamentary majority, strengthening President Francois Hollande’s position in questioning austerity measures and putting greater focus on growth.
The Greek electoral system gives the party with the highest vote a bonus of 50 extra seats but Mr Samaras will still need several coalition allies. He is likely to seek a partnership with the other traditional ruling party of Greece, the centre-left socialists of Pasok. Between them they could muster 160 seats in the 300-seat parliament, but given their fierce differences the coalition would be volatile. Syriza has declined to join the coalition.
“We have a very polarised election result and I think it is reflecting the anger as well as the fear of the voters,” said Kostas Papaioannou, a candidate for the Democratic Left.
Mr Papaioannou told The Age the strong result for extreme-right, anti-immigrant party Golden Dawn, which won about 7 per cent of the vote and an estimated 19 seats in parliament, showed the party was here to stay.
He said the vote that first catapulted the party into parliament last month was clearly not an aberration. Voters could not claim they did not know what they were voting for because they had seen the consequences of the party’s success in the past six weeks.
These included party spokesman Ilias Kasidiaris slapping a woman MP on national television, several racist attacks and a threat by party MP Ilias Pangiotaros to raid hospitals and kindergartens and throw immigrants and their children onto the street so Greeks could take their places.
Mr Papaioannou said: “In my view the top priority now is that we have to see what we can do with the fact that there will be strong neo-Nazi representation in the next parliament.”

First published in The Age.

Greek bailout back on track as election victor seeks allies

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ATHENS

Political horse-trading over the next few days will decide the shape of Greece’s next government, as the pro-Europe New Democracy Party tries to form yet another coalition to lead the troubled country.
Greek voters provided a breather in the euro crisis by favouring parties that support the bailout deal, warding off an immediate new crisis in the eurozone. But they also rewarded parties of the radical left and extreme right, marking a new polarisation in political views.
Antonis Samaras, leader of the conservative New Democracy, hailed his win as a victory for Greece and for Europe. He said: “We will not have new adventure, we will not doubt the position of Greece in Europe, we will not be cowed by fear.” But he also promised “we cannot continue to injure every family with government”. Greece has been crippled by five years of recession and high unemployment, intensified by severe austerity measures imposed as part of a European deal to help the nation cope with its euro debt.
Greece’s lenders had insisted the two bailouts, totalling €240 billion ($301 billion) , be honoured or funds would be cut off, bankrupting Greece and forcing it out of the eurozone. This could mean the end of the euro and global financial chaos.
But Greeks had protested fiercely against the harshness of the measures and an obscure party, the radical left Syriza, has sprung into prominence on the back of promises to tear up the memorandum over the bailout.
Syriza came a close second, increasing its share of the vote to more than 27 per cent. New Democracy won 29.4 per cent.
The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, congratulated Greek’s pro-bailout conservative leader on his victory and told him she is confident Athens will abide by its European pledges.
Germany – Europe’s biggest economy – has been a large contributor to Greece’s two multibillion-euro rescue packages and a key advocate of demanding tough, and highly unpopular, austerity and reform measures in exchange.
Meanwhile, weekend elections in France gave the socialists an easy absolute parliamentary majority, strengthening the position of the socialist President, Francois Hollande, in debates about the future of Europe.
European leaders had delayed leaving for a G20 summit in Mexico to see the Greek election result. The Greek electoral system gives the party with the highest vote a bonus of 50 extra seats but Mr Samaras will still need several coalition allies. He is likely to seek a partnership with the other traditional ruling party of Greece, the centre-left socialists of PASOK. Between them they could muster 160 seats in the 300-seat parliament but given their fierce differences the coalition would be volatile. Syriza has declined to join the coalition.
“We have a very polarised election result and I think it is reflecting the anger as well as the fear of the voters,” said Kostas Papaioannou, who stood as a candidate for the Democratic Left.
Mr Papaioannou, former chairman of the National Commission for Human Rights, told the Herald the strong result for the anti-immigrant party Golden Dawn, which won about 7 per cent of the vote and an estimated 19 seats in parliament, showed the party was here to stay. He said the vote that first catapulted the party into parliament in May was clearly not an aberration, and voters could not claim they did not know what they were voting for.
These included an incident in which party a spokesman slapped a woman MP on television, racist attacks, and a threat by party MP Ilias Panagiotaros to raid hospitals and kindergartens and throw immigrants and their children onto the street so that Greeks could take their places.
Mr Papaioannou said: “In my view the top priority now is that we have to see what we can do with the fact that there will be strong neo-Nazi representation in the next parliament.”

First published in the Sydney Morning Herald 19 June 2012.

Greek bailout back on track as election victor seeks allies

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ATHENS

Political horse-trading over the next few days will decide the shape of Greece’s next government, as the pro-Europe New Democracy Party tries to form yet another coalition to lead the troubled country.
Greek voters provided a breather in the euro crisis by favouring parties that support the bailout deal, warding off an immediate new crisis in the eurozone. But they also rewarded parties of the radical left and extreme right, marking a new polarisation in political views.
Antonis Samaras, leader of the conservative New Democracy, hailed his win as a victory for Greece and for Europe. He said: “We will not have new adventure, we will not doubt the position of Greece in Europe, we will not be cowed by fear.” But he also promised “we cannot continue to injure every family with government”. Greece has been crippled by five years of recession and high unemployment, intensified by severe austerity measures imposed as part of a European deal to help the nation cope with its euro debt.
Greece’s lenders had insisted the two bailouts, totalling €240 billion ($301 billion) , be honoured or funds would be cut off, bankrupting Greece and forcing it out of the eurozone. This could mean the end of the euro and global financial chaos.
But Greeks had protested fiercely against the harshness of the measures and an obscure party, the radical left Syriza, has sprung into prominence on the back of promises to tear up the memorandum over the bailout.
Syriza came a close second, increasing its share of the vote to more than 27 per cent. New Democracy won 29.4 per cent.
The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, congratulated Greek’s pro-bailout conservative leader on his victory and told him she is confident Athens will abide by its European pledges.
Germany – Europe’s biggest economy – has been a large contributor to Greece’s two multibillion-euro rescue packages and a key advocate of demanding tough, and highly unpopular, austerity and reform measures in exchange.
Meanwhile, weekend elections in France gave the socialists an easy absolute parliamentary majority, strengthening the position of the socialist President, Francois Hollande, in debates about the future of Europe.
European leaders had delayed leaving for a G20 summit in Mexico to see the Greek election result. The Greek electoral system gives the party with the highest vote a bonus of 50 extra seats but Mr Samaras will still need several coalition allies. He is likely to seek a partnership with the other traditional ruling party of Greece, the centre-left socialists of PASOK. Between them they could muster 160 seats in the 300-seat parliament but given their fierce differences the coalition would be volatile. Syriza has declined to join the coalition.
“We have a very polarised election result and I think it is reflecting the anger as well as the fear of the voters,” said Kostas Papaioannou, who stood as a candidate for the Democratic Left.
Mr Papaioannou, former chairman of the National Commission for Human Rights, told the Herald the strong result for the anti-immigrant party Golden Dawn, which won about 7 per cent of the vote and an estimated 19 seats in parliament, showed the party was here to stay. He said the vote that first catapulted the party into parliament in May was clearly not an aberration, and voters could not claim they did not know what they were voting for.
These included an incident in which party a spokesman slapped a woman MP on television, racist attacks, and a threat by party MP Ilias Panagiotaros to raid hospitals and kindergartens and throw immigrants and their children onto the street so that Greeks could take their places.
Mr Papaioannou said: “In my view the top priority now is that we have to see what we can do with the fact that there will be strong neo-Nazi representation in the next parliament.”First published in The Sydney Morning Herald.