PN congratulate EPP candidate Jean Claude Juncker

The Nationalist Party has congratulated former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker who was today selected as the European People's Party (EPP) candidate for the European Commission Presidency.

In a reaction, the PN, which forms of the EPP's political family, paid tribute to Juncker and explained that he is a close of friend of Malta.

The party also said that due to his post as former Luxembourg prime minister, Juncker knows the realties faced by small countries in the EU.

In July 2013, following a secret service scandal, Juncker resigned from his post as prime minister after 19 consecutive years at the helm.

Addressing the EPP Congress, Juncker argued that the politics of the European People's Party are the best way to reinstate the EU as a power house - a feat which was undermined and diminished in the wake of the financial turmoil that plagued several European countries.

59-year-old Juncker won a total of 382 votes. His closest challenger,  Michel Barnier, the vice president of the European People's Party, obtained 245 votes.

The May elections will see the new European Commission President replace Jose Manuel Barroso, who has held the position since November 2004.