The question of a possible Social Democrat candidate for European Parliament president for second half of 2019-2024 legislature dominated Parliament’s political day, on Tuesday 14 December in Strasbourg.
Meeting in the late afternoon, the S&D group finally decided not to nominate a candidate. The outgoing President, David Sassoli, who was once ready to fight, finally stepped aside to keep alive the pro-European majority in the Parliament that supports the 'von der Leyen' Commission.
“I do not want to destroy the European front. For this reason, I am not available”, he reportedly told the Social Democrat members. However, he reportedly pointed out that part of the Renew Europe group is asking the social democrats to put forward a candidate.
The President of the S&D group, Spanish Iratxe García Pérez, reported on exploratory discussions with the other political groups to test the chances of a social democratic candidacy. She reportedly indicated that there is no alternative majority at this stage to support such a candidacy.
On Tuesday evening, no alternative name to Mr Sassoli would have been tested at the group meeting.
By midday, French Socialist Sylvie Guillaume had said that the argument of the renewed strength of social democracy in Europe, embodied by Olaf Scholz’s rise to power in Germany, had been “met with refusal” from potential partners in the S&D group. The latter “closed the door quite quickly to the hypothesis of maintaining a social democrat at the head of the European Parliament”, she noted, referring to “subordinate” discussions already underway on the posts to be distributed within the European institution.
And she added with a touch of regret: “We don’t want to damage an image where the social democrats are making a comeback by running into a vote where we would lose the European Parliament”.
The EPP group united behind Roberta Metsola. The Christian Democrats maintain their political line. Pointing to their loyalty to the July 2019 informal agreement that the S&D and EPP groups would share the European Parliament presidency (see EUROPE 12287/1), they said the time has come for their candidate, Roberta Metsola from Malta, to take the reins of the assembly.
“We’re united” behind Roberta Metsola, whose candidacy is “convincing” and “very symbolic” and who wants to represent “the whole institution”, stressed the EPP group Chair, Manfred Weber. For him, “it would not be wise to start 2022 with a political conflict at EU level” which would cause a split in the pro-European forces.
A document circulating within the EP, of which EUROPE got a copy, lists ten provisions of EP resolutions of the current legislature which refer to the right to abortion and sexual and reproductive rights and which Ms Metsola would have voted against.
The Renew Europe group sets out its conditions. On Tuesday afternoon, the Chair of the Renew Europe group, the French MEP, Stéphane Séjourné, said he hoped that the situation would be resolved quickly, which would be possible once the Social Democrats had adopted their strategy.
He recalled the conditions for supporting the candidate of a pro-European political family for the leadership of the European Parliament: - the elaboration of a “list of priority reforms, also institutional, for the next two years”, such as the creation of transnational lists of candidates for the 2024 European elections and a right of initiative for the European Parliament; - the hearing of only pro-European candidates, as was already the case with Ms Metsola, who was questioned about her anti-abortion position (see EUROPE 12849/14); - the continuation of the parliamentary committee chairs already held by the centre-right group.
“These three conditions are necessary to have the full support of my group”, Mr Séjourné insisted. “If the conditions are met, of course, the July 2019 ‘deal’ will be respected”, he added, noting that the preconditions set do not include such an agreement.
Within the parliamentary group, there was concern on Tuesday that until the position of the Social Democrats was officially known, the Renew Europe group was not the main interlocutor of the Christian Democrats.
“The EPP is concerned about the possibility of a female social democratic candidate”, it was argued.
Earlier in the day, the French Renaissance delegation of the Renew Europe group met to discuss Ms Metsola’s candidacy. In particular, Bernard Guetta reiterated his opposition to a candidacy that does not respect a woman’s right to choose in matters of abortion. The French delegation did not reach a common position on the issue of support for Ms Metsola.
The Greens/EFA group is keeping the suspense alive. The green and regionalist group in the European Parliament has not yet decided whether it will present a candidate for the European Parliament presidency. And such a decision should not be taken before “January”, said the French MEP, David Cormand, on Tuesday morning.
According to him, the Greens/EFA group would like to “build a progressive majority” to “get the EPP out of the majority coalition”. But “the blockage comes from the fact that the S&D group is not doing the ‘job’ to build an alternative majority”, he commented, convinced that “a window of opportunity” does exist.
The Left group focused on its candidacy. On Tuesday morning, Spain’s Sira Rego shrugged off informal dealings between the Parliament’s main political groups to focus on the radical left’s proposals for reforming Europe, which include ensuring a socially just climate transition, blocking the far right and vigorously defending feminism.
On this point, Ms Rego said that the presence of women in key positions does not necessarily guarantee that feminist policies are pursued. And “the EPP has not been characterised by feminist values. On the contrary, it defends very conservative values”, she argued.
The co-chair of The Left group, Manon Aubry of France, said there were “exchanges” with the S&D and Greens/EFA groups, “including trying to form a left-wing bloc in this Parliament”. “I believe that neither the Greens nor the Socialists have made a clear choice today. Will they favour agreements between friends, even if it means ignoring political disagreements? Or are they ready to create a majority for progress in this European Parliament?”, she asked. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion with the editorial staff)