The European Parliament represents the peoples of the Member States. It is elected once every five years, through direct universal suffrage in every Member State, by proportionnal representation.

The Fifth general EP election was held on 10, 11 and 13 June 1999, the Fourth on 9 and 12 June 1994, and on 17 september 1995 (Sweden), 13 october 1996 (Austria), 20 october 1996 (Finland). The next will be in June 2004.

99 elected in Germany (DE);
87 each in France (FR), Italy (IT), the United Kingdom (UK);
64 in Spain (ES);
31 in the Netherlands (NL);
25 each in Belgium (BE), Greece (GR), Portugal (PT);
22 in Sweden (SE);
21 in Austria (AT);
16 each in Denmark (DK) and Finland (FI);
15 in the Republic of Ireland (IE);
6 in Luxembourg (LU).

MEPs don't usually vote by country of origin. Instead, they organize in political groups according to ideology and/or party affiliation. The minimum number of MEPs to form a political group is
29 if the members come from one Member State,
23 if they come from two,
18 if they come from three and
14 if they come from four or more Member States.
No MEP can be a member of more than one political group, but no MEP is under an obligation to be part of a political group either (even though it does bring advantages in speaking time and infrastructure).

Some MEPs call themselves associate (rather than "full") members of a political group; this reflects the fact that they are not bound by the common manifesto/platform of the pan-European political party behind the group, usually because their national party is not a member of this pan-European political party. This difference is irrelevant as far as internal Parliamentary procedures are concerned.

The country abbreviations used below are the official ISO3166 codes. Links have been added to the official or unofficial home pages of most of the parties; please drop me a line if you know any I did not include. Numbers between brackets are those of the previous (IV°) Parliament.

Leader: Herr Hans-Gert POETTERING (Christlich-Demokratische Union, NS, DE)
Vice-Leader: Mr. James E.M. ELLES (Conservative and Unionist Party, South East England, UK)
Vice-Leader: On. Francesco FIORI (Forza Italia, IT)
Vice-Leader: Sra. Carmen FRAGA ESTEVEZ (Partido Popular, ES)
Vice-Leader: Mme Françoise GROSSETÊTE (Démocratie Libérale, FR)
Vice-Leader: Ilkka SUOMINEN (Kansallinen Kokoomus, FI)
Vice-Leader: De Heer Wim G. van VELZEN (Christendemocratisch Appel, NL)

43 (39) Christlich-Demokratische Union (DE)
Rolf BEREND, Herr (TH)
Reimer BÖGE, Herr (SH)
Christian von BOETTICHER, Herr (SH)
Elmar BROK, Herr (NW)
Karl-Heinz FLORENZ, Herr (NW)
Michael GAHLER, Hr. (HE)
Anne-Karin GLASE, Frau (BG)
Lutz GOEPEL, Herr (SN)
Alfred GOMOLKA, Herr (MV)
Ruth HIERONYMI, Frau (NW)
Georg JARZEMBOWSKI, Herr (HG)
Elisabeth JEGGLE, Frau (BW)
Hedwig KEPPELHOFF-WIECHERT, Frau (NW)
Eva KLAMT, Frau (NS)
Christa KLASS, Frau (RP)
Karsten KNOLLE, Herr (SA)
Dieter-Lebrecht KOCH, Herr (TH)
Christoph Werner KONRAD, Herr (NW)
Werner LANGEN, Herr (RP)
Brigitte LANGENHAGEN, Frau (NS)
Armin LASCHET, Herr (NW)
Kurt LECHNER, Herr (RP)
Klaus-Heiner LEHNE, Herr (NW)
Peter LIESE, Herr (NW)
Thomas MANN, Herr (HE)
Hans-Peter MAYER, Herr (NS)
Winfried MENRAD, Herr (BW)
Peter Michael MOMBAUR, Herr (NW)
Hartmut NASSAUER, Herr (HE)
Doris PACK, Frau (SR)
Hans-Gert POETTERING, Herr (NS)
Godelieve QUISTHOUDT-ROWOHL, Frau (NS)
Ingo SCHMITT, Herr (BE)
Horst SCHNELLHARDT, Herr (SA)
Jürgen SCHRÖDER, Herr (SN)
Konrad K. SCHWAIGER, Herr (BW)
Renate SOMMER, Frau (NW)
Diemut R. THEATO, Frau (BW)
Brigitte WENZEL-PERILLO, Frau (SN)
Rainer WIELAND, Herr (BW)
Karl von WOGAU, Herr (BW)
Jürgen ZIMMERLING, Herr (NW)
Sabine ZISSENER, Frau (RP)

35/36 (17) Conservative and Unionist Party* (UK)
Robert ATKINS, Sir (North West England)
Christopher J.P. BEAZLEY, Mr (Eastern England)
Nicholas BETHELL, The Lord (London)
John BOWIS, Mr (London)
Philip Charles BRADBOURN, Mr (West Midlands)
Philip Rodway BUSHILL-MATTHEWS, Mr (West Midlands)
Martin CALLANAN, Mr (North East England)
Giles Bryan CHICHESTER, Mr (South West England)
John Alexander CORRIE, Mr (West Midlands)
Nirj DEVA, Mr (South East England)
Densmore DOVER, Mr (North West England)
James E.M. ELLES, Mr (South East England)
Jonathan EVANS, Mr (Wales)
Jacqueline FOSTER, Mrs (North West England)
Robert GOODWILL, Mr (Yorkshire & the Humber)
Daniel J. HANNAN, Mr (South East England)
Malcolm HARBOUR, Mr (West Midlands)
Christopher HEATON-HARRIS, Mr (East Midlands)
Roger HELMER, Mr (East Midlands)
The Lord INGLEWOOD (North West England)
Caroline F. JACKSON, Mrs (South West England)
Bashir KHANBHAI, Mr (Eastern England)
Timothy KIRKHOPE, Mr (Yorkshire & the Humber)
Edward H.C. McMILLAN-SCOTT, Mr (Yorkshire & the Humber)
Neil PARISH, Mr (South West England)
Roy PERRY, Mr (South East England)
James L.C. PROVAN, Mr (South East England)
John PURVIS, Mr (Scotland)
Struan STEVENSON, Mr (Scotland)
The Earl of STOCKTON (South West England)
Robert William STURDY, Mr (Eastern England)
David SUMBERG, Mr (North West England)
Charles TANNOCK, Dr. (London)
Geoffrey VAN ORDEN, Mr (Eastern England)
Theresa VILLIERS, Mrs (London)

27 (28) Partido Popular (ES)
Alejandro AGAG LONGO, Sr.
María Antonia AVILÉS PEREA, Sra.
María del Pilar AYUSO GONZÁLEZ, Sra.
Felipe CAMISÓN ASENSIO, Sr.
Fernando FERNÁNDEZ MARTÍN, Sr.
Carmen FRAGA ESTÉVEZ, Sra.
Gerardo GALEOTE QUECEDO, Sr.
José Manuel GARCÍA-MARGALLO Y MARFIL, Sr.
Cristina GARCÍA ORCOYEN TORMO, Sra.
Salvador GARRIGA POLLEDO, Sr.
José María GIL-ROBLES GIL-DELGADO, Sr.
Cristina GUTIÉRREZ-CORTINES, Sra.
Jorge Salvador HERNANDEZ MOLLAR, Sr.
Iñigo MENDEZ de VIGO Y MONTOJO, Sr.
Juan Andrés NARANJO ESCOBAR, Sr.
Juan OJEDA SANZ, Sr.
Ana PALACIO VALLERSUNDI, Sra.
Manuel PÉREZ ÁLVAREZ, Sr.
José Javier POMÉS RUIZ, Sr.
Encarnación REDONDO JIMÉNEZ, Sra.
Mónica RIDRUEJO, Sra.
Carlos RIPOLL Y MARTÍNEZ DE BEDOYA, Sr.
José Ignacio SALAFRANCA SÁNCHEZ-NEYRA, Sr.
Jaime VALDIVIESO DE CUÉ, Sr.
Daniel VARELA SUANZES-CARPEGNA, Sr.
Alejo VIDAL-QUADRAS ROCA, Sr.
Theresa ZABELL LUCAS, Sra.

22 (24) Forza Italia (IT)
Generoso ANDRIA, On.
Paoloa BARTOLOZZI, On.
Renato BRUNETTA, On.
Luigi CESARO, On.
Raffaele COSTA, On.
Marcello DELL'UTRI, On.
Enrico FERRI, On.
Francesco FIORI, On.
Giuseppe GARGANI, On.
Jas GAWRONSKI, On.
Giorgio LISI, On.
Mario MANTOVANI, On.
Mario MAURO, On.
Domenico MENNITTI, On.
Francesco MUSOTTO, On.
Giuseppe NISTICO', On.
Guido PODESTÀ, On.
Giacomo SANTINI, On.
Amalia SARTORI, Sig.ra
Umberto SCAPAGNINI, On.
Antonio TAJANI, On.
Stefano ZAPPALA' , On.

12 (17) Rassemblement pour la République/Démocratie Libérale (FR)
Joseph DAUL, M. (SC)
Christine de VEYRAC, Mme (SC)
Françoise GROSSETÊTE, Mme (DL)
Marie-Thérèse HERMANGE, Mme (RPR)
Brice HORTEFEUX, Mme (RPR)
Thierry B. JEAN-PIERRE, M. (DL)
Alain MADELIN, M. (DL)
Hugues MARTIN, M. (RPR)
Hervé NOVELLI, M. (DL)
Tokia SAIFI, Mme (DL)
Margie SUDRE, Mme (SC)
Dominique VLASTO, Mme (RPR)

10 (8) Christlich-Soziale Union in Bayern (DE)
Markus FERBER, Herr
Ingo FRIEDRICH, Herr
Xaver MAYER, Herr
Emilia Franziska MÜLLER, Frau
Angelika Victoria NIEBLER, Frau
Bernd POSSELT, Herr
Alexander RADWAN, Herr
Ursula SCHLEICHER, Frau
Gabriele STAUNER, Frau
Joachim Johannes WUERMELING, Herr

9 (10) Union pour la Démocratie Française (FR)
François BAYROU, M.
Jean-Louis BOURLANGES, M.
Thierry CORNILLET, M.
Francis DECOURRIERE, M.
Marielle DE SARNEZ, Mme
Nicole FONTAINE, Mme
Janelly FOURTOU, Mme
Alain LAMASSOURE, M.
Philippe MORILLON, M.

9 Christendemocratisch Appél (NL)
Bert DOORN, De Heer
Albert Jan MAAT, De Heer
Hanja Johanna R.H. MAIJ-WEGGEN, Mevr.
Maria MARTENS, Mevr.
Ria G.H.C. OOMEN-RUIJTEN, Mevr.
Arie M. OOSTLANDER, De Heer
Karla M.H. PEIJS, Mevr.
Bartho PRONK, De Heer
Wim G. van VELZEN, De Heer

9 Nea Dimokratia (GR)
Ioannis AVEROF, Ko.
Giorgos DIMITRAKOPOULOS, Ko.
Christos FOLIAS, Ko.
Konstantinos HATZIDAKIS, Ko.
Rodi KRATSA-TSAGAROPOULOU, Ka.
Ioannis MARINOS, Ko.
Antonios TRAKATELLIS, Ko.
Stavros XARCHAKOS, Ko.
Christos ZACHARAKIS, Ko.

9 (5) Partido Social Democrata (PT)
Teresa ALMEIDA GARRETT, Sra. D.
Regina BASTOS, Sra. D.
Carlos COELHO, Sr.
Carlos COSTA NEVES, Sr.
Arlindo CUNHA, Sr.
Vasco GRAÇA MOURA, Sr.
Sérgio MARQUES, Sr.
Jorge MOREIRA DA SILVA, Sr.
José PACHECO PEREIRA, Sr.

7 Österreichische Volkspartei (AT)
Marialiese FLEMMING, Frau
Othmar KARAS, Herr
Hubert PIRKER, Herr
Reinhard RACK, Herr
Paul RÜBIG, Herr
Agnes SCHIERHUBER, Frau
Ursula STENZEL, Frau

5 Moderata samlingspartiet (SE)
Per-Anne ARVIDSSON, Hr.
Lisbeth GRÖNFELDT BERGMAN, Fru
Gunilla CARLSSON, Fru
Charlotte CEDERSCHIÖLD, Fru
Per STENMARCK, Hr.

4 (7) Partito popolare italiano (IT)
Guido BODRATO, On.
Luigi COCILOVO, On.
Luigi Ciriaco DE MITA, On.
Franco MARINI, On.

4 Fine Gael (IE)
Mary Elizabeth BANOTTI, Mrs (Dublin)
John Walls CUSHNAHAN, Mr (Munster)
Avril DOYLE, Mrs (Leinster)
John Joseph McCARTIN, Mr (Connacht-Ulster)

4 Kansallinen Kokoomus (FI)
Piia-Noora KAUPPI
Marjo Tuulevi MATIKAINEN-KALLSTRÖM
Ilkka SUOMINEN
Ari VATANEN

Leader: Sr. Enrique BARÓN CRESPO (PSOE, ES)
Vice-Leader: Hr. Jan ANDERSSON (Sda, SE)
Vice-Leader: Mme Pervenche BERES (PS, FR)
Vice-Leader: De Heer Margrietus (Max) J. van den BERG (PvdA, NL)
Vice-Leader: Mr. Proinsias De ROSSA (Dublin) (Labour Party, IE)
Vice-Leader: M. Robert GOEBBELS (LSAP - d'Sozialisten, LU)
Vice-Leader: Herr Klaus HÄNSCH (SPD, DE)
Vice-Leader: Ko. Giorgos KATIFORIS (PaSoK, GR)
Vice-Leader: Mr. Simon Francis MURPHY (Labour, West Midlands, UK)
Vice-Leader: Riitta MYLLER (SSdP, FI)
Vice-Leader: Sig.ra Pasqualina NAPOLETANO (Democratici d Sinistra, IT)
Vice-Leader: Sr. Raimon OBIOLS I GERMA (PSOE, ES)
Vice-Leader: Sr. Manuel António dos SANTOS (Partido Socialista, PT)
Vice-Leader: Herr Johannes (Hannes) SWOBODA (SPÖ, AT)

33 (40) Socialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (DE)
Hans Udo BULLMANN, Herr
Garrelt DUIN, Herr
Evelyne GEBHARDT, Frau
Norbert GLANTE, Herr
Willi GÖRLACH, Herr
Lissy GRÖNER, Frau
Klaus HÄNSCH, Herr
Jutta D. HAUG, Frau
Magdalene HOFF, Frau
Karin JÖNS, Frau
Karin JUNKER, Frau
Margot KESSLER, Frau
Heinz KINDERMANN, Herr
Constanze Angela KREHL, Frau
Wilfried KUCKELKORN, Herr
Helmut KUHNE, Herr
Bernd LANGE, Herr
Jo LEINEN, Herr
Rolf LINKOHR, Herr
Erika MANN, Frau
Rosemarie MÜLLER, Frau
Wilhelm Ernst PIECYK, Herr
Christa RANDZIO-PLATH, Frau
Bernhard RAPKAY, Herr
Dagmar ROTH-BEHRENDT, Frau
Mechtild ROTHE, Frau
Willi ROTHLEY, Herr
Jannis SAKELLARIOU, Herr
Gerhard SCHMID, Herr
Martin SCHULZ, Herr
Ulrich STOCKMANN, Herr
Ralf WALTER, Herr
Barbara WEILER, Frau

29 (60) Labour (UK)
Gordon J ADAM, Mr (London)
Richard A. BALFE, Mr (London)
David Robert BOWE, Mr (Yorkshire and the Humber)
Michael CASHMAN, Mr (West Midlands)
Richard Graham CORBETT, Mr (Yorkshire and the Humber)
Robert J.E. EVANS, Mr (London)
Glyn FORD, Mr (South West England)
Neena GILL, Mrs (West Midlands)
Mary HONEYBALL, Mrs (XXXX)
Richard Stuart HOWITT, Mr (Eastern England)
Stephen HUGHES, Mr (North East England)
Glenys E. KINNOCK, Mrs (Wales)
Linda McAVAN, Mrs (Yorkshire and the Humber)
Arlene McCARTHY, Mrs (North West England)
Eryl Margaret McNALLY, Mrs (Eastern England)
David W. MARTIN, Mr (Scotland)
Bill MILLER, Mr (Scotland)
Claude MORAES, Mr (London)
Mair Eluned MORGAN, Mrs (Wales)
Simon Francis MURPHY, Mr (West Midlands)
Barbara O'TOOLE, Mrs (North East England)
Imelda Mary READ, Mr (East Midlands)
Brian SIMPSON, Mr (North West England)
Peter William SKINNER, Mr (South East England)
Catherine STIHLER TAYLOR, Mrs (Scotland)
Gary TITLEY, Mr (North West England)
Mark Francis WATTS, Mr (South East England)
Philip WHITEHEAD, Mr (East Midlands)
Terence WYNN, Mr (North West England)

24 (21) Partido Socialista Obrero Español (ES)
Pedro APARICIO SANCHEZ, Sr.
Enrique BARÓN CRESPO, Sr.
Luis BERENGUER FUSTER, Sr.
Carlos CARNERO GONZALEZ, Sr. (PDNI)
Alejandro CERCAS ALONSO, Sr.
Carmen CERDEIRA MORTERERO, Sra.
Joan COLOM I NAVAL, Sr.
Rosa M. DÍEZ GONZÁLEZ, Sra.
Barbara DÜHRKOP DÜHRKOP, Sra.
Juan de Dios IZQUIERDO COLLADO, Sr.
Maria IZQUIERDO ROJO, Sra.
Miguel Angel MARTÍNEZ MARTÍNEZ, Sr.
Manuel MEDINA ORTEGA, Sr.
José Maria MENDILUCE PEREIRO, Sr.
Emilio MENÉNDEZ del VALLE, Sr.
Rosa MIGUÉLEZ RAMOS, Sra.
+Raimon OBIOLS I GERMA, Sr.
Fernando PÉREZ ROYO, Sr.
María RODRÍGUEZ RAMOS, Sra.
Francisca SAUQUILLO PÉREZ DEL ARCO, Sra.
María SORNOSA MARTÍNEZ, Sra. (PDNI)
Anna TERRÓN i CUSÍ, Sra.
María Elena VALENCIANO MARTÍNEZ-OROZCO, Sra.
Carlos WESTENDORP Y CABEZA, Sr.

22 (16) Parti Socialiste/Parti Radical de Gauche/Mouvement Des Citoyens (FR)
Pervenche BERES, Mme (PS)
Marie-Arlette CARLOTTI, Mme (PS)
Gérard CAUDRON, M. (PS)
Danielle DARRAS, Mme (PS)
Michel DARY, M. (PRG)
Harlem DÉSIR, M. (PS)
Olivier DUHAMEL, M. (PS)
Anne FERREIRA, Mme (PS)
Jean-Claude FRUTEAU, M. (PS)
Georges GAROT, M. (PS)
Marie-Hélène GILLIG, Mme (PS)
Catherine GUY-QUINT, Mme (PS)
Adeline HAZAN, Mme (PS)
Catherine LALUMIERE, Mme (PRG)
Sami NAÏR, M. (MDC)
Béatrice PATRIE, Mme (MDC)
Bernard POIGNANT, M. (PS)
Michel ROCARD, M. (PS)
Martine ROURE, M. (PS)
Gilles SAVARY, M. (PS)
Michel-Ange SCARBONCHI, M. (PS)
François ZIMERAY, M. (PS)

15 (17) Democratici di Sinistra (IT)
Massimo CARRARO, On.
Giovanni Claudio FAVA, On.
Fiorella GHILARDOTTI, Sig.ra
Renzo IMBENI, On.
Vincenzo LAVARRA, On.
Pasqualina NAPOLETANO, Sig.ra
Giorgio NAPOLITANO, On.
Elena Ornella PACIOTTI, Sig.ra
Giovanni PITTELLA, On.
Giorgio RUFFOLO, On.
Guido SACCONI, On.
Bruno TRENTIN, On.
Gianni VATTIMO, On.
Valter VELTRONI, On.
Demetrio VOLCIC, On.

12 (10) Partido Socialista (PT)
António CAMPOS, Sr.
Carlos CANDAL, Sr.
Maria CARRILHO, Sra. D.
Paulo CASACA , Sr.
Elisa Maria DAMIÃO, Sra. D.
Carlos LAGE, Sr.
Luís MARINHO, Sr.
Manuel António dos SANTOS, Sr.
Mário SOARES, Sr.
Sérgio SOUSA PINTO, Sr.
Helena TORRES MARQUES, Sra. D.
Joaquim VAIRINHOS, Sr.

9 (10) Panellinio Socialistiko Kinima (GR)
Alexandros BALTAS, Ko.
Anna KARAMANOU, Ka.
Giorgos KATIFORIS, Ko.
Ioannis KOUKIADIS, Ko.
Minerva-Melpomeni MALLIORI, Ka.
Emmanouil MASTORAKIS, Ko.
Ioannis SOULADAKIS, Ko.
Dimitris TSATSOS, Ko.
Myrsini ZORBA, Ka.

7 (6) Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs (AT)
Maria Margarethe BERGER, Frau
Herbert BÖSCH, Herr
Harald ETTL, Herr
Hans-Peter MARTIN, Herr
Christa PRETS, Frau
Karin SCHEELE, Frau
Johannes (Hannes) SWOBODA, Herr

6 (7) Partij van de Arbeid (NL)
Margrietus J. van den BERG, De Heer
Ieke van de BURG, Mevr.
Dorette CORBEY, Mevr.
Michiel VAN HULTEN, De Heer
Joke SWIEBEL, Mevr.
Jan Marinus WIERSMA, De Heer

6 (7) Socialdemokratiska arbetarepartiet (SE)
Jan ANDERSSON, Hr.
Göran FÄRM, Hr.
Ewa HEKVIST PETERSEN, Fru
Anneli HULTHÉN, Fru
Hans KARLSSON, Hr.
Maj Britt THEORIN, Fru

3 (4) Socialdemokratiet (DK)
Freddy BLAK, Hr.
Torben LUND, Hr.
Helle THORNIG-SCHMIDT, Fru

3 Parti Socialiste (BE)
Jean-Maurice DEHOUSSE, M.
Véronique DE KEYSER, Mme
Olga ZRIHEN, Mme

Leader: Mr Patrick Cox (Independents, IE)
Vice-Leader: On. Paolo COSTA (I Democratici, IT)
Vice-Leader: Hr. Bertel HAARDER (Venstre, DK)
Vice-Leader: De Heer Dirk STERCKX (Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten, BE)
Vice-Leader: Herra Paavo VÄYRYNEN (Suomen Keskusta, FI)

10 (2) Liberal Democrats (UK)
Graham R. WATSON, Mr (South West England)
Elspeth ATTWOOLL, Mrs (Scotland)
Nicholas CLEGG, Mr (East Midlands)
Chris DAVIES, Mr (North West England)
Andrew Nicholas DUFF, Mr (Eastern England)
Christopher HUHNE, Mr
Sarah LUDFORD, Baroness (London)
Elizabeth LYNNE, Mrs (West Midlands)
Emma NICHOLSON OF WINTERBOURNE, Baroness
Diana WALLIS, Mrs (Yorkshire and the Humber)

6 (0) I Democratici (IT)
Luciano CAVERI, On.
Paolo COSTA, On.
Antonio DI PIETRO, On.
Pietro-Paolo MENNEA, On.
Giovanni PROCACCI, On.
Francesco RUTELLI, On.

6 Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie (NL)
Jules MAATEN, De Heer
Toine MANDERS, De Heer
Jan MULDER, De Heer
Elly PLOOIJ-VAN GORSEL, Mevr.
Maria Johanna (Marieke) SANDERS-TEN HOLTE, Mevr.
Adriaan VERMEER

5 (4) Venstre (DK)
Ole ANDREASEN, Hr.
Niels BUSK, Hr.
Bertel HAARDER, Hr.
Anne Elisabet JENSEN, Fru
Karin RIIS-JØRGENSEN, Fru

3 (1) Folkpartiet liberalerna (SE)
Cecilia MALMSTRÖM, Fru
Marit PAULSEN, Fru
Olle SCHMIDT, Hr.

2 (4) Democraten '66 (NL)
Bob VAN DEN BOS, De Heer
Lousewies van der LAAN, De Heer

2/3 Convergencia i Unio* (ES)
Pere ESTEVE I ABAD, Sr. (CDC)
Carles-Aldred GASOLIBA I BÖHM, Sr.

Leader: Heidi Anneli HAUTALA (Vihreä Liitto, FI),
Leader: Paul A.A.J.G LANNOYE (Écolo, BE)
Vice-Leader: Mme Danielle AUROI (Les Verts, FR)
Vice-Leader: De Heer Jan Joost LAGENDIJK (Groen Links, NL)
Vice-Leader: Mevr. Nelly MAES (Volksunie/Vlaamse Vrije Democraten, BE)

9 (0) Les Verts (FR)
Danielle AUROI, Mme
Alima BOUMEDIENE-THIERY, Mme
Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT, Herr
Hélène FLAUTRE, Mme
Marie-Anne ISLER BÉGUIN, Mme
Alain LIPIETZ, M.
Gérard ONESTA, M.
Yves PIETRASANTA, M.
Didier ROD, M.

4/7 (12) Bündnis 90/Die Grünen* (DE)
Hiltrud BREYER, Frau
Friedrich-Wilhelm GRAEFE zu BARINGDORF, Herr
Heide RÜHLE, Frau
Elisabeth SCHROEDTER, Frau

4 (1) Groen Links (NL)
Theodorus J.J. BOUWMAN, De Heer
Kathalijne Maria BUITENWEG, Mevr.
Jan Joost LAGENDIJK, De Heer
Alexander DE ROO, De Heer

3 (1) Écolo (BE)
Monica FRASSONI, Mme
Pierre JONCKHEER, M.
Paul A.A.J.G LANNOYE, M.

2 (0) Green Party (UK)
Jean LAMBERT, Mrs (London)
Dr Caroline LUCAS, Mrs (South East England)

2 Scottish National Party (UK)
Neil MacCORMICK, Mr (Scotland)
Ian Stewart HUDGHTON, Mr (Scotland)

Leader: Francis WURTZ (PCF, FR)
Vice-Leader: Sylvia-Yvonne KAUFMANN (PDS, DE)
Vice-Leader: Pernille FRAHM, Fru (SP, DK)

6 (7) Parti Communiste français/Indépendants (FR)
Sylviane H. AINARDI, Mme (PCF)
Yasmine BOUDJENAH, Mme (PCF)
Geneviève FRAISSE, Mme (Ind)
Philippe A.R. HERZOG, M. (PCF)
Fodé SYLLA, M. (Ind)
Francis WURTZ, M. (PCF)

6 (0) Partei des Demokratischen Sozialismus (DE)
Andre BRIE, Herr
Christel FIEBIGER, Frau
Sylvia-Yvonne KAUFMANN, Frau
Helmuth MARKOV, Herr
Hans MODROW, Herr
Feleknas UCA, Frau

4 (5) Rifondazione comunista (IT)
Fausto BERTINOTTI, On.
Giuseppe DI LELLO FINUOLI, On.
Luisa MORGANTINI, Sig.ra
Luigi VINCI, On.

4 (9) Izquierda Unida (ES)
Laura GONZÁLEZ ÁLVAREZ, Sra.
Salvador JOVÉ PERES, Sr.
Pedro MARSET CAMPOS, Sr.
Alonso José PUERTA GUTIERREZ, Sr.

3 Vänsterpartiet (SE)
Marianne ERIKSSON, Fru
Herman SCHMIDT, Hr.
Jonas SJÖSTEDT, Hr.

3 (2) Kommounistiko Komma Elladas (GR)
Konstantinos ALYSANDRAKIS, Ko.
Efstratios KORAKAS, Ko.
Ioannis PATAKIS, Ko.

Leader: M. Charles PASQUA (RPFIE, FR)
Vice-Leader: Hr. Mogens CAMRE (Dansk Folkeparti, DK)
Vice-Leader: Mr. Gerard COLLINS (Fianna Fáil, IE)
Vice-Leader: Sig.ra Cristiana MUSCARDINI (Alleanza nazionale, IT)
Vice-Leader: Sr. Luís QUEIRÓ (Centro Democratico Social/Partido Popular, PT)

9 (11+3) Alleanza nazionale/Patto Segni (IT)
Roberta ANGELILLI, Sig.ra
Sergio Antonio BERLATO, On.
Cristiana MUSCARDINI, Sig.ra
Antonio MUSSA, On.
Sebastiano (Nello) MUSUMECI, On.
Mauro NOBILIA, On.
Adriana POLI BORTONE, Sig.ra
Mariotto Giovanni Battista Luigi SEGNI, On. (Patto Segni)
Francesco TURCHI, On.

6 (7) Fianna Fáil (IE)
Niall ANDREWS, Mr (Dublin)
Gerard COLLINS, Mr (Munster)
Brian CROWLEY, Mr (Munster)
James (Jim) FITZSIMONS, Mr (Leinster)
Pat The Cope GALLAGHER, Mr (Connacht-Ulster)
Liam HYLAND, Mr (Leinster)

2 (3) Centro Democratico Social/Partido Popular (PT)
Luís QUEIRÓ, Sr.
José RIBEIRO E CASTRO, Sr.

Leader: Hr. Jens-Peter BONDE (Junibevægelsen, DK)
Co-leader: De Heer Johannes (Hans) BLOKLAND (SGP/GPV/RPF, NL)
Co-leader: M. Jean SAINT-JOSSE (Chasse, Pêche, Nature, Traditions, FR)

6 (0) Chasse, Pêche, Nature, Traditions (FR)
Jean-Louis BERNIÉ, M.
Yves BUTEL, M.
Alain ESCLOPÉ, M.
Véronique MATHIEU, Mme
Michel RAYMOND, M.
Jean SAINT-JOSSE, M.

2/3 (0) United Kingdom Independence Party* (UK)
Nigel Paul FARAGE, Mr (South East England)
Jeffrey William TITFORD, Mr (Eastern England)

3 (2) Junibevægelsen (DK)
Jens-Peter BONDE, Hr.
Jens Dyhr OKKING, Hr.
Ulla Margrethe SANDBÆK, Fru

6 (11) Mouvement pour la France (FR)
Georges BERTHU, M.
Thierry Brac de LA PERRIERE, M.
Elizabeth MONTFORT, Mme
Dominique F.C. SOUCHET, M.
Nicole THOMAS-MAURO, Mme
Alexandre VARAUT, M.

5 (12) Front National (FR)
Charles de GAULLE, M.
Bruno GOLLNISCH, M.
Carl LANG, M.
Jean-Marie LE PEN, M.
Jean-Claude MARTINEZ, M.

3/4 (6) Lega Nord* (IT)
Mario BORGHEZIO, On.
Gian Paolo GOBBO, On.
Francesco Enrico SPERONI, On.

V°	EPP	PES	ELDR	GRN	GUE	UEN	EDD	NI	TOT
AT	7	7	.	2	.	.	.	5	21
BE	6	5	5	7	.	.	.	2	25
DE	53	35	.	4	7	.	.	.	99
DK	1	3	6	.	1	1	4	.	16
ES	28	24	3	4	4	.	.	1	64
FI	5	3	5	2	1	.	.	.	16
FR	21	22	.	9	11	3	9	12	87
GR	9	9	.	.	7	.	.	.	25
IE	5	1	1	2	.	6	.	.	15
IT	34	16	8	2	6	10	.	11	87
LU	2	2	1	1	.	.	.	.	6
NL	9	6	8	4	1	.	3	.	31
PT	9	12	.	.	2	2	.	.	25
SE	7	6	4	2	3	.	.	.	22
UK	36	30	11	6	.	.	2	2	87
TOT	232	181	52	45	43	22	18	33	626
V°	EPP	PES	ELDR	GRN	GUE	UEN	EDD	NI	TOT

IV°	EPP	PES	ELDR	GRN	GUE	UE	ERA	EDN	NI	TOT
AT	7	6	1	1	.	.	.	.	6	21
BE	7	6	6	2	.	.	1	.	3	25
DE	47	40	.	12	.	.	.	.	.	99
DK	3	4	5	.	.	.	.	4	.	16
ES	29	21	2	.	9	.	3	.	.	64
FI	4	4	5	1	2	.	.	.	.	16
FR	13	16	1	9	7	17	12	8	13	87
GR	9	10	.	.	4	2	.	.	.	25
IE	4	1	1	2	.	7	.	.	.	15
IT	36	19	4	3	5	3	2	.	15	87
LU	2	2	1	.	.	.	1	.	.	6
NL	9	7	10	1	.	.	.	2	.	31
PT	9	10	.	.	3	3	.	.	.	25
SE	5	7	3	4	3	.	.	.	.	22
UK	17	61	3	1	1	.	2	1	1	87
TOT	200	214	42	27	34	36	20	15	38	626
IV°	EPP	PES	ELDR	GRN	GUE	UE	ERA	EDN	NI	TOT

*DEAD GROUPS:

The Union for Europe Group was formed in October 1995 as a grouping of two formerly separate parliamentary groups: the Forza Europa group consisting of the sole Forza Italia party and the traditional "Gaullist" Group of the European Democratic Alliance. Through this merger, they replaced the Liberal group (ELDR) as the third biggest group in the European Parliament.
Recently, Forza Italia joined the EPP group, making the ELDR group taking the fourth place again.
Following the June 1999 election, the Gaullists left the group for the EPP, the remaining members joined the Europe of Nations group to form a new one : Union for Europe of Nations.

The Radical Frenchies having campaigned with the Socialists, the traditional European Free Alliance members joined the Green Group.

2. What are the powers of the European Parliament?

The powers of the European Parliament vary considerably from one policy area to the next. In some policy areas it is significantly lacking in power compared with the position of national parliaments in functioning democracies, whereas in other areas, it virtually forms part of the bicameral legislature together with the Council. The procedures are as follows (all beginning with a proposal from the Commission) :

Consultation procedure:
Parliament is simply asked to give its opinion, and Council takes the decision. However, Council must wait for Parliament's opinion and any parliamentary amendments that are accepted by the Commission can only be modified in Council by unanimity;

Co-operation procedure:
two readings in each body (Council and Parliament), the first as under the consultation procedure, the second allowing Parliament to adopt further amendments or to reject Council's text (in which case Council can only approve it by overruling Parliament unanimously within three months);

Co-decision procedure:
two readings in each body followed by a conciliation committee if their positions still diverge. If the conciliation committee agrees on a compromise, both Council and Parliament have to approve it. If conciliation fails, Council may adopt a text unilaterally, but this text will not become law if Parliament rejects it within six weeks;

Assent procedure:
Parliament's approval required (in a single reading with no amendments) for a measure to be adopted by Council;

Budget procedure:
two readings in each body with Parliament having the final say over some items and Council over others. However, neither can go beyond a certain rate of increase without the approval of the other, and Parliament can reject the budget as a whole.

In the second reading of the cooperation or codecision procedures, the Parliament is constrained by the requirement to obtain a majority of its members to amend the Council position or to reject it. In other words, abstentions or absences do not count: 314 of the 626 members must vote in favour of the amendment or rejection.

Given the inevitable absenteeism of at least some members at any given moment, this requirement has the effect of obliging Parliament's political groups to negotiate broadly based compromises: something that probably makes political sense anyway when dealing with the Council, which is composed of ministers from a variety of different political backgrounds according to the majorities and coalitions in the Member States.

Only under the codecision procedure and the assent procedure does Parliament have an absolute right of veto which cannot be overriden by the Council (even by unanimity). The codecision procedure applies to about a quarter of the total volume of European legislation going through Parliament. This includes most single market legislation, the research programme, environmental programmes, consumer protection legislation, programmes in the field of public health and education and transeuropean networks.

In the other procedures, Parliament remains somewhat dependent on the position adopted by the Commission. If the Commission accepts Parliament's amendments to its proposals and incorporates them in a modified proposal to the Council, the latter needs unanimity to remove the amendments, whereas a qualified majority will normally be enough to adopt the proposal as a whole.

Despite Parliament's weakness in the cooperation procedure - where it can ultimately be overruled by Council - a large proportion of its amendments under this procedure still gets through. In his excellent work on the European Parliament, Martin Westlake puts forward a grand total of all the
322 proposals dealt with under the co-operation procedure up to 30 December 1993.

In looking at these figures, and seeing that only half of Parliament amendments end up in the final legislation, two things should be borne in mind. First, the other branch of the legislative authority - the Council - is also democratically elected, albeit indirectly, as each of its members belongs to an elected national government.

Secondly, the executive (in this case the Commission) is rather weak compared to most national executives (governments). Its proposals rarely get through Parliament and Council without substantial amendments -unlike the situation in many national parliaments. In absolute terms, the number of amendments put into legislation by the European Parliament is far greater than many national parliaments.

There is another area in which the EP's powers have risen considerably. Since the Maastricht Treaty, the European Parliament must approve both of the President of the Commission and of the Commission in full. It can also make the Commission resign with a 2/3 majority. It cannot sack individual Commissioners.

The newly elected EP of 1994 has interpreted this decision as such that it has the right to question all individual candidate Commissioners thoroughly (modelled on the US Senate "hearings" for candidate government ministers) before approving of the new Commission as a whole. The new Commission president has accepted this interpretation in practice; hearings have taken place from 16 to 20 January 1995, and the Commission president has had to make some changes to and supplementary promises about the portfolios of his fellow Commissioners as a result of the hearings, before his Commission was approved with a 417 against 104 majority.

3. Who is the President of the European Parliament?

MEPs elect the President of the European Parliament and his/her bureau from their midst, with a mandate of two and a half years. Subsequent EP presidents since the first direct elections were:

1979-1982 Ms Simone Veil (ELDR, France)
1982-1984 Mr Piet Dankert (PES, The Netherlands)
1984-1987 Mr Pierre Pflimlin (EPP, France)
1987-1989 Sir Henry Plumb (Conservative, UK) [Tory MEPs were in the former European Democrats group during Lord Plumb's presidency; in 1992 they followed their former European Democrats group partners, and joined the EPP group.]
1989-1992 Mr Enrique Barón Crespo (PES, Spain)
1992-1994 Mr Egon Klepsch (EPP, Germany)
1994-1997 Mr Klaus Hänsch (PES, Germany)
1997-1999 Mr José María Gil-Robles (EPP, Spain)
1999-2002 Mrs Nicole Fontaine (EPP, France)

4. Where can I find the European Parliament on the net?

Many of the civil servants working at the European Parliament have an email address with a gateway to the Internet, in the "gw.europarl.org" zone. MEPs and their assistants are less likely to be reachable. You could try to ask the <postmaster@gw.europarl.org> for a specific person's email address.

Edited by Stéphane Dohet, based on an original FAQ by Roland Siebelink
& Bart Schelfhout

	First reading	Second reading
European Parliament	4572 amendlents tabled	1074 amendments tabled
European Commission	2499 (54.66%) taken up	475 (44.23%) taken up
Council of the Union	1966 (43%) accepted	253 (23.56%) accepted
[Source: Westlake 1994, p265]

The European Parliament

1. How is the European Parliament composed?

*DEAD GROUPS:

2. What are the powers of the European Parliament?

3. Who is the President of the European Parliament?

4. Where can I find the European Parliament on the net?