The PES has 199 members from 23 different countries and the meeting will carry on into next week.

John Attard Montalto, Louis Grech and Joseph Muscat will be voting for a new PES president to take the place of Enrique Baron Crespo. They will also be voting for a vice-president and treasurer and decide on nominations for various PES positions in the EP.

The group will also discuss its plan for the next five years. Maltese delegation head Dr Attard Montalto attended a meeting for heads of delegations. During this meeting, Dr Attard Montalto participated in discussions regarding the appointment of the European Commission president and the position the PES will take once it goes to vote.

Meanwhile, Josep Borrell should be nominated for the post of European Parliament president. The election will be held on 20 July when the new MEPs will meet for the first time. Dr Borrell is 57 years old and was a Spanish Cabinet minister between 1991 and 1996.

In a separate meeting, German national Martin Schultz was elected leader of the European Socialists parliamentary group.