The camp of Giorgia Meloni, head of the Italian government, seems to surpass that of the French president Emmanuel Macron in the European Parliament, as the Italian leader seeks to influence the distribution of key positions in the EU. Following the June 9 European elections, Ms. Meloni's Fratelli d'Italia party and other far-right forces increased their number of MEPs in Strasbourg, while the Renew Europe group lost many seats. This phenomenon was accentuated by the departure of elected members from the Czech Ano party, led by billionaire former prime minister Andrej Babis.
Today, the group of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), where Fratelli d'Italia is based, claims third place in the European Parliament with 83 deputies, compared to 81 for Renew (74 without the seven Czech MEPs who have not yet formalized their departure).
According to Ms. Meloni, this gap is a game-changer. Traditionally, key positions in the European Union are allocated based on the results of European elections. However, the political forces that came out on top on June 9: the Christian Democrats of the EPP, followed by the Social Democrats of the S&D group, wish to reconstitute the majority they had with the centrists of Renew during the previous legislature.
The three political groups combined still hold a majority: around 400 seats out of a total of 720 MEPs. Aware of this advantage, the European leaders of the EPP, S&D and Renew began to discuss among themselves on the evening of June 17, during an informal summit of the 27, the allocation of these key EU positions. To be continued.
Caspian of Ronchères
