European People's Party:
- This article is about the europarty established in 1976. For the European Parliament Group tracing its ancestry back to 1952, see the European People's Party–European Democrats.
The European People's Party (EPP) is a christian democratic, liberal conservative and conservative European political party. Founded in 1976, the EPP has 72 member-parties from 39 countries, 11 EU and 6 non-EU heads of government, 9 European Commissioners (including the President), and the largest group in the European Parliament with 288 members.
[edit] History
EPP traces its ancestry to the Nouvelles Equipes Internationales in 1946[1] or 1948,[2] via the European Union of Christian Democrats founded in 1965,[1] although it has been argued that it ultimately descends from the Secretariat International des partis democratiques d'inspiration chretienne founded in 1925.[2]
[edit] Structure
[edit] Organisation
Its current President is former Belgian Prime Minister Wilfried Martens. Martens was re-elected President at the March 2006 EPP Congress in Rome for a 3-year term. In the same Congress, French Minister Michel Barnier (UMP), Finnish Deputy Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen (KOK), former Slovenian Prime Minister Lojze Peterle (NSi), former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (Fidesz), German State Secretary Peter Hintze (CDU), Irish opposition leader Enda Kenny (FG) and Chairman of the EP Foreign Affairs Committee Jacek Saryusz-Wolski (PO) were elected as EPP Vice-Presidents.
[edit] Position
According to its website, the EPP is "the family of the political centre-right, whose roots run deep in the history and civilization of the European continent and has pioneered the European project from its inception."
By invitation of the EPP President, the President of the European Commission, the President of the European Parliament and the EPP heads of government (or leaders of the opposition) customarily meet a few hours prior to the Summit of the European Council at the Brussels suburb of Meise for the EPP Summit to form common positions.
[edit] EPP in the European institutions
The EPP currently holds the Presidencies of the three main EU institutions: the European Commission led by President José Manuel Barroso (PSD), the European Council led by Prime Minister Janez Janša (SDS), and the European Parliament led by President Hans-Gert Pöttering (CDU). In the second half of 2008, it will continue to chair the Presidency of the European Council, led by French President Nicolas Sarkozy (UMP).
[edit] European Council
EPP has 11 out of the 27 heads of State or Government in the European Council: Jan Peter Balkenende (Netherlands, CDA), Lawrence Gonzi (Malta, PN), Janez Janša (Slovenia, SDS), Jean-Claude Juncker (Luxembourg, CSV), Kostas Karamanlis (Greece, ND), Angela Merkel (Germany, CDU), Fredrik Reinfeldt (Sweden, MSP), Nicolas Sarkozy (France, UMP), Donald Tusk (Poland, PO), Yves Leterme (Belgium, CD&V), and Silvio Berlusconi (Italy, FI).
It also has 5 heads of State or Government who do not normally take part in the European Council since that responsibility belongs to the other leaders of their countries: Aníbal Cavaco Silva (Portugal, PSD), François Fillon (France, UMP), Horst Köhler (Germany, CDU), Edward Fenech Adami (Malta, PN) and Traian Băsescu (Romania, PD-L).
[edit] European Commission
EPP has 9 out of 27 members of the European Commission: President José Manuel Barroso (Portugal, PSD), Vice President Jacques Barrot (France, UMP), Vice President Franco Frattini, (Italy, FI), Joe Borg, (Malta, PN), Stavros Dimas (Greece, ND), Ján Figeľ (Slovakia, KDH), Andris Piebalgs (Latvia, TP), Viviane Reding (Luxembourg, CSV), and Benita Ferrero-Waldner (Austria, ÖVP).
[edit] European Parliament
-
In the European Parliament the EPP is allied with the more eurosceptic 'European Democrats' sub-group to form the EPP-ED Group of 288 MEPs. The current Group Chairman in French UMP politician Joseph Daul, replacing Hans-Gert Pöttering who was elected as the new President of the European Parliament in January 2007.
[edit] Council of Europe and OSCE
EPP also has parliamentary groups in the parliamentary assemblies of the Council of Europe and the OSCE.
[edit] EPP outside the EU
EPP, through its associate parties, also has 6 heads of State or Government from non-EU countries: Ivo Sanader (Croatia, HDZ), Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Turkey, AKP), Vojislav Koštunica (Serbia, DSS), Sali Berisha (Albania, DP), Nikola Gruevski (former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, VMRO-DPMNE), Viktor Yushchenko (Ukraine, NSNU) & Yulia Tymoshenko (Ukraine, Fatherland) and Mikheil Saakashvili (Georgia, UNM).
In recent years, the EPP has been developing beyond Europe bilateral relations with major conservative and like-minded parties. Due its firm transatlantic orientation, North America has been a particular focus of the Party's international activities.
[edit] Member parties
 Austria
 Belgium
 Bulgaria
 Cyprus
 Czech Republic
 Denmark
 Estonia
 Finland
 France
 Germany
 Greece
 Hungary
 Ireland
 Italy
 Latvia
 Lithuania
 Luxembourg
 Malta
 Netherlands
 Poland
 Portugal
 Romania
 Slovakia
 Slovenia
 Spain
 Sweden
[edit] Associate members
 Croatia
 Norway
- Høyre (H) (Conservatives)
 Serbia
 Switzerland
[edit] Observer members
 Albania
 Belarus
 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatia
Finland
 Macedonia
Italy
 Moldova
Norway
 San Marino
 Turkey
 Ukraine
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Trans-European Party Groupings: Emergence of New and Alignment of Old Parties in the Light of Direct Elections to the European Parliament" by Paul-H Claeys and Nicole Loeb-Mayer, from "Government and Opposition", Volume 14, issue 4, page 455-478
- ^ a b "On the road towards transnational party cooperation in Europe" by Steven van Hecke in "European View", Volume 3, 2006, from the Centre for European Studies
[edit] External links
|
