The President of the S&D Group in the European Parliament, Udo Bullmann of Germany, refuses at this stage to discuss negotiations with the Christian Democrats of the European People's Party (EPP) to influence future appointments to senior European positions, convinced that the Twenty-Eight will propose to the next European Parliament a Spitzenkandidat to chair the European Commission and that the leading candidate on the social democratic list, the Dutchman Frans Timmermans, will be the most likely to be supported by a political majority in the European Parliament.
“Frans Timmermans will preside over the European Commission”, Mr Bullmann told reporters. According to him, the European Parliament “fully” supports the Spitzenkandidat process and “I cannot imagine that the European Council would not respect this”.
The Conference of Presidents of the European Parliament's political groups will analyse the outcome of the European elections on Tuesday 28 May in the morning, before the leaders of the 28 Member States do the same in the evening. “I expect the Conference of Presidents to defend its institutional position”, said the German Social Democrat. And to insist on the primacy to be given to ideas and the project for the future of the EU before talking about people.
On the issue of appointments to senior European posts, Mr Bullmann supported the approach of the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, for whom the Twenty-Eight should decide in packages and quickly, if possible at the end of June, and if necessary by qualified majority (see EUROPE 12251/2). “I am not against it”, he said, stressing the importance for the European institutions to be operational as soon as possible.
The chairman of the S&D group did not fundamentally oppose a progressive alliance in Europe from Mr Tsipras on the far left to the centre-right forces of French President Emmanuel Macron. We are “open hands” discuss with pro-European forces, he said. It is therefore normal for him that the Portuguese Socialist Prime Minister, António Costa, and the former Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, should attend a meeting of Mr Macron's Renaissance list in Strasbourg, but this does not mean a total merger (see EUROPE 12253/16). He refused to say whether he would like to continue to chair the S&D group.
In its reform agenda for the next 5 years, the Party of European Socialists (PES) advocates a new social contract (see EUROPE 12155/3) and, in particular, minimum wages in all Member States equivalent to at least 60% of the national median wage and increased investment (see EUROPE 12250/9). Social Democrats are also calling for tax reforms to ensure that multinationals pay at least 18% tax on their profits. They also promise to take action against child poverty in Europe. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)