- Title: EU Parliament set to elect new speaker in heated vote
- Date: 16th January 2017
- Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 11, 2017) (REUTERS) ALLIANCE OF LIBERALS AND DEMOCRATS FOR EUROPE (ALDE) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, GUY VERHOFSTADT, ARRIVING FOR DEBATE WITH OTHER CANDIDATES EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY (EPP) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, ANTONIO TAJANI, ARRIVING FOR DEBATE PARTY OF EUROPEAN SOCIALISTS (PES) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, GIANNI PITTELLA, ARRIVING FOR DEBATE GREENS/EUROPEAN FREE ALLIANCE GROUP (GREENS/EFA) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, JEAN LAMBERT, ARRIVING FOR DEBATE EUROPEAN CONSERVATIVES AND REFORMISTS (ECR) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, HELGA STEVENS, ARRIVING FOR DEBATE BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 16, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST AT THE EUROPEAN POLICY CENTRE, JANIS EMMANOUILIDIS, SAYING: "What is clear is that you will require a coalition. If you want to have an absolute majority, you definitely need one because no group in the European Parliament has a big enough potential vote to be able to make it in the first round but even in the last round where you need a relative majority, you will probably have to have, no you will have to have, some support from different parties." BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 11, 2017) (REUTERS) TAJANI WAITING FOR DEBATE TO START STEVENS SPEAKING WITH LAMBERT VERHOFSTADT SPEAKING TECHNICIAN SETTING UP TAJANI'S MICROPHONE PITTELLA USING MOBILE PHONE VERHOFSTADT SHAKING HANDS WITH PITTELLA, TAJANI EUROPEAN UNITED LEFT/NORDIC GREEN LEFT (GUE/NGL) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, ELEONORA FORENZA, EUROPE OF NATIONS AND FREEDOM GROUP (EFN) GROUP CANDIDATE AT EU PARLIAMENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, LAURENTIU REBEGA, BEHIND PODIUM, ALONGSIDE VERHOFSTADT, TAJANI, PITTELLA, LAMBERT AND STEVENS BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 16, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST AT THE EUROPEAN POLICY CENTRE, JANIS EMMANOUILIDIS, SAYING: "You had, de facto, a grand coalition between the socialists and the conservatives. That coalition is now ended. Also, the fact that they were not able to agree on a common candidate - now, in view of this election - makes it politically more difficult among them. So we will see a parliament which will be more divided, which will be facing more problems in coming to a majority vote. So it will become a more difficult partner in the EU institutional setting." BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 11, 2017) (REUTERS) PITTELLA LISTENING TO TAJANI PITTELLA LISTENING TO VERHOFSTADT TAJANI NODDING PITTELLA AND TAJANI PARTICIPATING IN DEBATE FORENZA, LAMBERT, VERHOFSTADT, PITTELLA, TAJANI, STEVENS AND REBEGA PARTICIPATING IN DEBATE VERHOFSTADT SPEAKING BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 16, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST AT THE EUROPEAN POLICY CENTRE, JANIS EMMANOUILIDIS, SAYING ABOUT ALDE GROUP CANDIDATE GUY VERHOFSTADT: "But following the circumstance that things did not work out in including the Italian 5-Star Movement into the ALDE group, which was on his initiative, that he (ALDE group candidate Guy Verhofstadt) found a lot of opposition within his own party, that he was criticized for including a party which had been critical about the EU, critical about the euro into one of the most progressive groups of the European Parliament, has undermined his position. So the chances of him striking a win now has diminished massively." BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 11, 2017) (REUTERS) VERHOFSTADT WAVING, PITTELLA, TAJANI, STEVENS ON PODIUM CANDIDATES PREPARING FOR GROUP PHOTO VERHOFSTADT AND TAJANI SPEAKING VARIOUS OF CANDIDATES POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (JANUARY 16, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST AT THE EUROPEAN POLICY CENTRE, JANIS EMMANOUILIDIS, SAYING: "(Outgoing European Parliament President) Martin Schulz was a very strong president of the European Parliament. He was rather known in the European Union. Obviously not every citizen in the European Union knew him but a lot knew him. He was a prominent voice - not only in his mother country, Germany, but also in other EU member states. End even though he was coming from a country which has often been criticized, Germany, he was also respected in countries, which are critical of Berlin's position with respect to EU affairs. So you will be having - whoever will become president of the European Parliament - a weaker president compared to Martin Schulz. So you probably (be) - moving back to the old normal, which we had before he became president of the European Parliament."
- Embargoed: 30th January 2017 15:41
- Keywords: EU Parliament President Schulz MEP Tajani Pittella Stevens Verhofstadt Forenza Lambert Pedicini Rebega expert EPC election
- Location: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM / STRASBOURG, FRANCE
- City: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM / STRASBOURG, FRANCE
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: European Union,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0015ZBYKP3
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The European Parliament will elect a new speaker on Tuesday (January 17) in an unusually heated vote that could end a decade-long cooperation between mainstream parties, and complicate lawmaking and relationships with other EU institutions.
A senior analyst with the European Policy Centre (EPC) think tank, Janis Emmanouilidis, said the end of a cooperation under which past appointments were agreed in advance by the main parties, will lead to political groups being forced to form coalitions.
"What is clear is that you will require a coalition. If you want to have an absolute majority, you definitely need one because no group in the European Parliament has a big enough potential vote to be able to make it in the first round but even in the last round where you need a relative majority, you will have to have some support from different parties," Emmanouilidis said.
Whatever the outcome of the vote, Emmanouilidis said the divisive vote may make EU lawmaking more complicated with coalitions becoming unstable.
"You've had a de facto grand coalition between the socialists and the conservatives. That coalition is now ended. Also, the fact that they were not able to agree on a common candidate - now, in view of this election - makes it politically more difficult among them so we will see a parliament which will be more divided," said the Brussels-based analyst for the think tank presided by former EU Council president Herman Van Rompuy.
As a result, important pieces of legislation on financial services or the internal market over which the EU Parliament has a say could be delayed.
All eight political groups of the legislature have fielded candidates, but the winner is expected to be one of the two Italians put up by the main centre-right and centre-left groupings.
Conservative Antonio Tajani, 63, a close ally of Italy's former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, is the favourite as he can count on the support of the European People's Party, the largest grouping in parliament.
Tajani will face Gianni Pittella, 58, who is bidding to succeed predecessor Martin Schulz, also of the centre-left.
Emmanouilidis says liberal candidate Guy Verhofstadt, a former Belgian prime minister, could have lost all his chances after his push for anti-establishment 5-Star Movement was rejected by his own party a week earlier.
"He was criticized for including a party which had been critical about the EU, critical about the euro into one of the most progressive groups of the European Parliament, has undermined his position so the chance of him striking a win now has diminished massively," Emmanouilidis told Reuters.
5-Star's members had voted earlier on January 9 to break their alliance with the anti-EU UK Independence Party in favour of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), but ALDE declined, citing deep-seated incompatibilities.
Verhofstadt had paved the way for its entry into ALDE but could not convince a majority of its 68 members.
The vote is scheduled for Tuesday and the 751 EU lawmakers might take up to four rounds to select the president.
Emmanouilidis rejects the idea that a fragmented parliament will not risk giving a further boost to eurosceptic forces.
He also warns that the era of stability the European institution has known under outgoing President Martin Schulz, a German Social Democrat, is likely to be over.
"He was a prominent voice - not only in his mother country, Germany, but also in other EU member states - and even though he was coming from a country which has often been criticized, Germany, he was also respected in countries, which are critical of Berlin's position with respect to EU affairs. So you will be having - whoever will become president of the European Parliament - a weaker president compared to Martin Schulz so probably you will be moving back to the old normal," Emmanouilidis said.
If Tajani wins, the conservatives would hold all three top posts. Jean-Claude Juncker of Luxembourg heads the EU's Brussels-based executive, the Commission, and former Polish prime minister Donald Tusk chairs the European Council, which groups the national governments.
Socialists have warned that if Pittella does not win in the Parliament, they will push for a reshuffle of the key posts.
Tusk's mandate ends in May but he is expected to want to stay on. Juncker has three years left, but has been weakened by Brexit, the migration crisis and recurrent criticism over Luxembourg's tax deals with multinationals during his nearly 19 years as the country's prime minister. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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