GUE/NGL MEPs today obtained influential positions on several parliamentary committees with German MEP Thomas Händel elected Chair of Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee.

Händel commented after the meeting: “Chairing the Employment and Social Affairs Committee is a great honour and challenge. I am looking forward to closely cooperating with all political groups in order to tackle the tasks ahead. A matter of highest urgency will be the fight against unemployment, in particular youth unemployment, but also the fight against precarious jobs. EU citizens expect not only improvement on a quantitative level, but also on a qualitative one, for instance through improved rules on health and safety at work or through better cooperation among Member States in order to tackle abuses, such as undeclared work or the circumvention of laws designed to protect employees. I pledge to be strongly engaged in strengthening the social dimension of Monetary Union and of the European Union as a whole.”

The GUE/NGL also got Vice Chair Positions on the following Committees:

Regional Development: Younous Omarjee

Constitutional Affairs: Barbara Spinelli

Foreign Affairs: Marina Albiol

Women's Rights and Gender Equality: Inês Zuber

Development: Konstantinos Chrysogonos

Industry, Research and Energy: Miloslav Ransdorf

Security and Defence: Sabine Lösing

David Lundy +32 470 85 05 09

Emily Macintosh +32 470 85 05 08

Gay Kavanagh +32 473 84 23 20