Now elected for a new term, the 81 French MEPs will be able to take their place in the European Parliament. How will they sit? How is each group organized? How will the presidency of Parliament be elected? 20 minutes make the point
How do MEPs sit?
First thing to know, the deputies will not be brought together by nationality but by political affinities. To form a political group – the Parliament had seven until now – you must bring together at least 23 elected representatives, from at least a quarter of the member states.
The rules are slightly different in France. As a reminder, at least 15 elected officials are needed to form a group in the National Assembly and 10 in the Senate.
Finally, an MEP can only belong to one political group. However, some do not belong to any group. In this case, they are part of the “non-registered”. During the last term, 61 deputies were in this situation.
What internal organization?
Each political group must have an internal president (or two co-presidents for some of them), an office and a secretariat.
In the hemicycle, the places allocated to MEPs are determined according to their political affiliation, from left to right, after agreement by the group presidents.
Before each vote in plenary session, each of the groups examines the reports from the parliamentary committees, and submits amendments to these texts.
The position taken by the political group is resolved by consultation within this same group, no member can receive a compulsory voting mandate.
Who will elect the President of Parliament?
These are the MPs themselves. The presidency, which represents the European Parliament vis-à-vis the outside world and in its relations with the other institutions of the Union, will be elected for two and a half years, renewable.