The European People's Party (EPP) announced today that it has launched an internal investigation into the activities of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), which has associate member status in the conservative pan-European party.
After representatives of the Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals in the European Parliament recently called on the EPP to exclude the Progressives from membership due to undemocratic tendencies, the EPP Presidency today entrusted Secretary General Dolors Montserrat and Vice President Kostis Hatzidakis to lead an "internal vetting process regarding the role" of the SNS in the party.
Montserrat and Hatzidakis will be in close contact with all stakeholders, including the SNS leadership, according to the website of the EPP, the largest group in the European Parliament.
"This is not an official statutory suspension or expulsion procedure from the EPP, but a thorough and prompt internal investigation with an open outcome," it added.
That the SNS's status in the EPP would be the subject of discussion within the conservative political family was announced by its president, Manfred Weber, on September 9. He also said at the time that the EPP was "carefully monitoring the situation and developments" in Serbia and that it was "not blind to the latest developments."
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