European elections – what do the parties stand for?

The June 9 European elections are just around the corner, and the next legislature for the European Parliament is going to be dominated by certain pressing issues. 

Continental defense amid the war in Ukraine, global migration, and the climate crisis are just some of the main topics that have repeatedly come up during the election campaign. 

However, not all political groups consider such issues equally important and hold widely varying views. 

Here below, you can find an analysis of the proposals and opinions of the main parties  on various European issues according to their manifestos.

Defense and security

Most groups in the European Parliament want to improve the continent’s defense capabilities and increase either the budget for defense or cooperation among states. Only the far-left and far-right parties are more distant from the rest.

For the conservative European People's Party (EPP), the group with more MEPs than any other heading into the vote, defense is one of the biggest issues, and they want to increase spending on it. In addition, they want to create a European Security Council in which non-member states such as Norway or the United Kingdom would participate.

Liberals grouped in Renew Europe, which includes parties such as Spain's Ciudadanos and the Basque Nationalist Party, see defense as a "key to prosperity" and propose increasing spending on military cooperation and research.

The Party of European Socialists (PES) propose strengthening the EU's diplomatic role in the world, but also propose developing the defense industry in Europe and joint defense procurement among member states.

The Greens also propose strengthening the EU's diplomatic role, but also want to improve military cooperation between members. Unlike the other groups, they stress that security strategies should take into account "human security and the needs of the people."

The Left advocates for a "political programme for peace, security and disarmament" and the avoidance of militarization. In this sense, this group advocates reducing the defense budget and opposes the expansion of NATO.

Eurosceptic group European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) emphasize "respect for the sovereignty of states" and therefore don't want the EU to have more powers, even in the field of defense.

Finally, Identity and Democracy, a far-right and Eurosceptic group, opposes further integration in defense. Though they have not published any manifesto, this sentiment has been expressed in a text published in 2022 and in many other quotes ahead of the vote.

Economy

The competitiveness of the European market and, in particular, of European products characterizes the electoral programs of most groups.

The People's Party wants Europe to "protect its interests" and proposes the creation of a new position to support small- and medium-sized enterprises.

The Socialists propose an investment plan for the digital and ecological transition. They oppose austerity and want to promote a plan to boost EU products. 

Like conservatives and socialists, liberals also focus their economic proposal on "regaining competitiveness" in the EU in their manifesto. 

The Greens want to promote a green economy by "creating millions of green jobs at the cutting edge of industry," and agree with the Socialist investment plan: "We propose a major investment plan to finance green industries and infrastructure across the European Union."

The far-right Reformists want to cut red tape and make deals with non-EU states to bring in cheaper products from third countries. 

The Left puts forward a different point of view, proposing to "move the economy away from limitless growth," but they, like other groups, put forward an investment plan to create new jobs. They want to abolish the deficit and debt rules in the EU, to make the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, a temporary instrument that is the centerpiece of NextGenerationEU, permanent and to apply a tax on large fortunes.

Climate 

The climate crisis divided the People's Party during the last legislature, but they wrote in their manifesto that green measures could be an "opportunity to build prosperity" and help industry during the transition. They also believe that a transition is essential for competitiveness.

S&D want to link environmental and social policies. They also want to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency, and reform the energy market to ensure stability and affordable prices. Amid ongoing farmers' protests across the continent, they also advocate for strengthening the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to support farmers and improve their incomes. 

The Greens’ manifesto starts with ecologist policies and a defense of the European Green Deal, the commitment to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, but they propose to reach this objective by 2040. Similarly to economy, the Greens want to push forward with a green transition to boost the economy and meet climate goals. 

The liberals of Renew Europe don't add more than the European Green Deal. They consider it to be the economic way to a sustainable future. They defend farmers, saying that climate and farmers are two sides of the same coin and that their main danger is climate change.

The European Conservatives and Reformists want to slow climate policies down. They say it's necessary to take action against climate change, but that it shouldn't impose unnecessary costs on companies or member states. They defend a gradualist strategy that could have the support of all states.

The Left also wants to speed up climate proposals, suggesting an "ecological, energy and industrial transformation," and to advance the EU's goal of climate neutrality to 2035. The party also wants to "promote a new ecological social contract" and change the  Common Agricultural Policy allocation system to "redirect" aid to "sustainable and ecological" agriculture.

Migration

Migration was one of the most discussed issues during the last legislature and is sure to remain as such in the coming years.

The European People's Party wants to tighten controls and increase cooperation with non-member states, making deals such as the one with Tunisian, where the EU paid the north African country €105 million to tighten security on its borders. They also want to triple the number of Frontex border security agents and propose to take asylum seekers to "safe" non-member states for procedure, a proposal which has drawn controversy.

The Socialists say that the application of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, approved in April, should respect "human rights and human dignity" and offer "fair and respectful procedures." They also want to create a European search and rescue mission in the Mediterranean. 

The Greens defend policies that "recognize the immense contribution that migrants make to societies" and "replicate" the system of immediate temporary protection given to Ukrainians after the Russian invasion. They also advocate the creation of European visas for human rights and environmental defenders, legal protection for those displaced by climate crises and environmental disasters, and a search and rescue mission in the Mediterranean, similar to the Socialists. 

The manifesto of the Liberals backs the need for legal "clarity and stability" for those seeking refuge in the EU. They pledge to study the creation of "legal economic routes" so that "European economies can have the workers they need to grow."

For the far-right Conservatives and Reformists, migration is an important point in its manifesto. The group stands as, they say, the "voice of reason" in the European Parliament on "internal and external security." "We need a migration system that respects the voice and wishes of its member states and citizens," says the manifesto, which also advocates for more expulsions of migrants in an irregular situation.

The Left sees the topic of migration through a lens of social equality, supporting “legal and safe migration routes” and pushing proposals to allow migrants to work legally in Europe, and view this as a process of decolonization. The party has vowed to push back against migration deals that go beyond Europe’s own borders. 

Identity and Democracy criticizes that the EU has "open borders in an increasingly extreme way" and the European "obsession," it says, with "everything that promotes mass immigration."