History
For many years the various parties of the alternative left worked together in the same group in the European Parliament. In 1989, four parties, the Italian CP; the United Left of Spain, the SPP of Denmark and Synaspismos of Greece decided to form a Group called the European United Left (GUE, Gauche Unitaire Européenne). When the Italian CP, renamed the PDS, decided to join the Socialist International in 1991, the latter joined the Socialist Group in the European Parliament.
A process of gathering together all the forces of the non-Socialist left then began. This alliance, enlarged to include other parties, was established as a political group at the beginning of the fourth parliamentary term in 1994 under the name Confederal Group of the European United Left (GUE). The member parties were: United Left of Spain; the Communist Party of France; Communist Refoundation of Italy; the Communist Party of Portugal; the Communist Party of Greece; and Synaspismos of Greece. The first president of the Group was Alonso Puerta a member of the Izquierda Unida of Spain.
Following enlargement of the EU to the Nordic countries and Austria in January 1995, the Group expanded to include: the Left Party (VP) of Sweden and the Left Alliance (Vas) of Finland. At the same time the Socialist Peoples' Party (SF) of Denmark rejoined the group and together with the Swedish and Finnish parties formed the Nordic Green Left (NGL) component within the group.The group was renamed the Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left, with GUE/NGL as the standard acronym.
In 1998, Ken Coates a distinguished MEP, who left the British Labour Party, joined the GUE/NGL from the PES Group and Carlo Ripa Di Meana, an Italian MEP and former Environment Commissioner, joined the group from the Greens to bring the GUE/NGL to 34 MEPs from eight countries.
In the European elections of 1999, all the outgoing parties were successful in securing representation in the new Parliament. They were joined in the Group by the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) of Germany. The Group also welcomed a third party from Greece, the DIKKI, and five MEPs from France, elected on the LO-LCR list. Since Alonso Puerta did not contest the elections, a new President was elected: Francis Wurtz of the French Communist Party.
During 2001, two MEPs - Ilka Schröder from the Green Group and Freddy Blak from the Group of the Party of European Socialists - joined the GUE/NGL.
During 2002, six MEPs - Ole Krarup and Jens Okking from the EDD Group and Gérard Caudron, Michel Dary, Sami Nair, et Michel-Angel Scarbonchi from the PES Group - joined the GUE/NGL. This brought the numbers up to 49 MEPs from ten countries, bringing along with it the GUE/NGL's highest ever representation in the European Parliament and making it the fourth largest Group.
In 2003, as part of the accession process of 10 new Member States, Observers joined the Group from Cyprus (2), Czech Republic (3), Latvia (1), and Slovakia (1), and these became full MEPs on 01 May 2004.
The European elections in June 2004 saw a solid electoral performance by GUE/NGL parties. Fourteen outgoing delegations were returned with 38 MEPs. With the addition of two new MEPs from Ireland's Sinn Féin, and one from the Left Bloc of Portugal, the Group had 41 Members from 14 Member States. Francis Wurtz was re-elected President of the Group.
In the European elections of June 2009, several new delegations joined the group, the Socialist Party from Ireland and the UC from Latvia. In France, the Front de Gauche Pour Changer d'Europe elected MEPs to the group from the Parti Communiste and the Parti de Gauche. The French delegation also includes a member from the Parti Communiste Réunionnais. The new group consists of 35 MEPs from 12 Member States. On this occasion, Francis Wurtz who had been an MEP since 1979 did not go forward and the group elected in his place Lothar Bisky of the Die Linke party from Germany.
Parties not currently represented in the European Parliament but with whom the group maintains close cooperation include Rifondazione Comunista (Italy), PdCI (Italy), Vas (Finland), Socialist Left Party (Norway), Parti du Travail (Switzlerland) and La Gauche/Déi Lénk (Luxembourg).