European United Left–Nordic Green Left


The European United Left/Nordic Green Left is a political group of the European Parliament established in 1995, and composed of left-wing to far-left members.
The group comprises political parties of socialist and communist orientation.

History

In 1995, the enlargement of the European Union led to the creation of the Nordic Green Left group of parties. The Nordic Green Left merged with the Confederal Group of the European United Left on 6 January 1995, forming the Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left. The NGL suffix was added to the name of the expanded group on insistence of Swedish and Finnish MEPs. The group initially consisted of MEPs from the Finnish Left Alliance, the Swedish Left Party, the Danish Socialist People's Party, the United Left of Spain, the Synaspismos of Greece, the French Communist Party, the Portuguese Communist Party, the Communist Party of Greece and the Communist Refoundation Party of Italy.
In 1998, Ken Coates, an expelled MEP from the British Labour Party who co-founded the Independent Labour Network, joined the group.
In 1999, the German Party of Democratic Socialism and the Greek Democratic Social Movement joined as full members while the five MEPs elected from the list of the French Trotskyist alliance LO–LCR and the one MEP for the Dutch Socialist Party joined as associate members.
In 2002, four MEPs from the French Citizen and Republican Movement and one from the Danish People's Movement against the EU also joined the group.
In 2004, no MEPs were elected from LO–LCR and DIKKI—which was undergoing a dispute with its leader over the party constitution—, as well as the French Citizen and Republican Movement, did not put forward candidates. MEPs from the Portuguese Left Bloc, the Irish Sinn Féin, the Progressive Party of Working People of Cyprus and the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia joined the group. The Danish Socialist People's Party, a member of the Nordic Green Left, left the group to instead sit in the Greens–European Free Alliance group.
In 2009, no MEPs were elected from the Irish Sinn Féin, the Italian Communist Refoundation Party and the Finnish Left Alliance. MEPs from the Irish Socialist Party, the Socialist Party of Latvia and the French Left Party joined the group.
In 2013, one MEP from the Croatian Labourists – Labour Party also joined the group.
In 2014, no MEPs were elected from the Irish Socialist Party, the Socialist Party of Latvia and the Croatian Labourists – Labour Party. MEPs from the Spanish Podemos as well as EH Bildu and the Dutch Party for the Animals joined the group, while MEPs from the Italian Communist Refoundation Party and the Finnish Left Alliance reentered parliament and rejoined. The Communist Party of Greece, a founding member of the group, decided to leave and instead sit as Non-Inscrits.
In 2019, no MEPs were elected from the French Communist Party, the Danish People's Movement against the EU, the Dutch Socialist Party and from the Italian parties The Left and the Communist Refoundation Party. MEPs from the French La France insoumise, the Belgian Workers' Party of Belgium, the German Human Environment Animal Protection, the Irish Independents 4 Change and the Danish Red-Green Alliance joined the group.

Position

According to its 1994 constituent declaration, the group is opposed to the present European Union political structure, but it is committed to integration. That declaration sets out three aims for the construction of another European Union, namely the total change of institutions to make them fully democratic, breaking with neo-liberal monetarist policies, and a policy of co-development and equitable cooperation. The group wants to disband the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and strengthen the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
The group is ambiguous between reformism and revolution, leaving it up to each party to decide on the manner they deem best suited to achieve these aims. As such, it has simultaneously positioned itself as insiders within the European institutions, enabling it to influence the decisions made by co-decision; and as outsiders by its willingness to seek another Europe which would abolish the Maastricht Treaty.

Organisation

The GUE/NGL is a confederal group who is composed of MEPs from national parties. Those national parties must share common political objectives with the group as specified in the group's constituent declaration. Nevertheless, those national parties and not the group retain control of their MEPs, therefore the group may be divided on certain issues.
Members of the group meet regularly to prepare for meetings, debate on policies and vote on resolutions. The group also publishes reports on various topics.

Member parties

MEPs may be full or associate members.
National parties may be full or associate members.

9th European Parliament

The initial member parties for the 9th European Parliament was determined at the first meeting on 29 May 2019.

8th European Parliament

7th European Parliament

6th European Parliament

European Parliament results