“On behalf of the EPP Group, I would like to sincerely thank Martin Schulz for his outstanding commitment to Europe”, said Manfred Weber MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group, following the announcement by European Parliament President Martin Schulz of his decision to leave the European Parliament.

“Martin Schulz is a strong and powerful European: we highly value his contribution to the cooperation in Europe, especially in his past roles as ‘Spitzenkandidat’ during the 2014 European election campaign and as President of the European Parliament.

The passion and clarity that he has shown in his function as President of the European Parliament is extraordinary. The European Parliament has enormously benefitted from his leadership and his commitment both in terms of recognition by public opinion and as regards the Parliament's influence on European law-making”, said Weber.

“Martin Schulz has also helped build a strong and stable coalition between the S&D Group and the EPP Group, also including good cooperation with the Liberals. Thanks to this cooperation, we have managed to fulfil our main goal: to make sure the European Parliament is able to deliver. This is what we want to continue.

For now it is crucial to make sure this stability is safeguarded. We also want to make sure that the role of radical and extremist MEPs is limited and that they cannot influence major EU decisions. This is what is needed over the coming years.”