European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has placed second and Labour MEP Alex Agius Saliba 35th in the list of most influential MEPs, Eumatrix.eu, the official site that collects statistics on the political influence of European Parliament Members, said.
Malta registered the highest score of how influential its representatives were relative to its size.
European People’s Party MEP Manfred Weber topped the list. Weber a member of the Christian Social Union party in the German region of Bavaria, is the chair of the EPP group, which is the largest political grouping in the EP.
Small countries like Malta were able to punch above their weight by holding more leadership positions or a greater role in legislation than their size would normally allow, the report said.
“This is, for instance, the case of Malta and Luxembourg, as their MEPs are able to play an important role in the European Parliament despite coming from the smallest EU countries,” the report said.
The European People’s Party (EPP) was the most influential group as a whole, though Renew MEPs tended to punch above their weight the most, the report said.
Agius Saliba was highly recognised for his work in the digital and social fields while he continued to increase his influence as Vice President of the Socialist Group and Vice President of the Petitions Committee in the European Parliament.
The Maltese MEP was also ranked as the 8th most influential MEP within the Socialist Group MEPs and as one of the ten most influential MEPs in the digital field at European level.