European Parliament’s liberal group opens doors to N-VA

The European Parliament’s Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) came out in favour of allowing four MEPs from the Flemish separatist party, N-VA, to join its ranks at a meeting of the ALDE group on Tuesday.

Belgium’s MR party, a faction of ALDE and political opponents of the N-VA, France’s Democratic Movement party and two Spanish parties opposed the move.

The four N-VA MEPs in question are Johan Van Overtveldt, Helga Stevens, Mark Demesmaeker et Louis Ide.

Although the N-VA party has not yet made a formal request to join ALDE, an ALDE spokesperson confirmed that “the door was open to them if they wanted to come in”. No vote on the matter was held but the decision to allow the N-VA to join the parliamentary group was taken “by acclamation”.

Former prime minister Guy Verhofstadt was re-elected as head of the ALDE group on Tuesday evening.