Headed by EPP Group Chairman, Joseph Daul and President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, the EPP Group is organising a ceremony, on Wednesday 12 January, to honour former European Commission Vice-President, Loyola de Palacio, who died in 2006.

The room, allocated by the European Parliament for meetings of the EPP Group Presidency will, as of Wednesday 12 January, be known by the name of the Spanish politician. The ceremony will be attended by Mariano Rajoy, the leader of the Spanish EPP party, Partido Popular, former Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Aznar, and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. Many colleagues during Loyola de Palacio's political career in Spain and the European Institutions like former Commission President, Romano Prodi, and former EU Commissioner, Mario Monti will also be in attendance.

Ana de Palacio, sister of Loyola de Palacio, former EPP MEP and Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister, will also participate in the ceremony where she will unveil, together with EP President Jerzy Buzek, the plaque and a bust honouring Loyola de Palacio.

The decision to allocate the name of Loyola de Palacio to one of the European Parliament meeting rooms - room 6Q1 and usually the meeting room of the EPP Group Presidency - was taken last September by the Bureau of the House, after an initiative by the Vice-Chairman of the EPP Group and head of the Spanish Delegation of the EPP, Jaime Mayor Oreja. It was decided, in agreement with the family of Ms. de Palacio, to honour the contribution of Loyola de Palacio to the development of democracy in Spain to the advancement of the European Union.

Loyola de Palacio (1950-2006) was the first woman to be named Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries in Spain and the first woman to be appointed as Vice-President of the European Commission, responsible for Transports, Energy and Relations with the European Parliament.

Programme

The ceremony is open to the media.

For more information:
Joseph DAUL MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group, Tel: +32-2-2845525
Pedro López de Pablo, EPP Group Press & Communications Service, Tel: +32-475-493352