German Socialist elected European Parliament president

Socialist Martin Schulz was voted president of the European Parliament on Tuesday after defeating two British rivals in the first ballot.

Succeeding Polish Christian Democrat Jerzy Buzek for the second half of a five-year term, Schulz, 56, has been shouldered with the demanding tasks of solving the European debt crisis and boosting the economy through legislative efforts. Schulz won 387 out of the 670 valid votes cast on Tuesday morning in Strasbourg, the European Parliament's base in France. The result caused British candidates Nirj Deva, a member of the European Conservatives, and Diana Wallis, who belongs to the Liberals, to withdraw after the first ballot.

Ioan Mircea Pascu, a member of the European Parliament, told China Daily that through Schulz's efforts Parliament may play a bigger role in solving Europe's worsening debt problems.

"He (Schulz) also frequently said that he wants those problems solved not exclusively in summits, but in ways allowing the Parliament to bring their own contribution," Pascu said in an interview. "He promised to defend and promote the European Parliament."

His election may signal a comeback of the "left" in the political landscape of Europe, Pascu said. "Let us wait for the coming elections in some of the most important EU countries due this and next year, to see whether the prediction is confirmed," Pascu said.

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