Consolation prizes

Date: 16/01/1997

French and Greek MEPs Nicole Fontaine and Georgios Anastassopoulos have both won consolation prizes after their rival bids for the European Parliament presidency were thwarted by fellow European People's Party (EPP) member José María Gil-Robles.

Both were previously Parliament vice-presidents, but neither was automatically assured of one of the four EPP vice-presidential places when the group selected its candidates last week.

With a grace-and-favour place guaranteed to Antonio Capucho, who brought his Portuguese Christian Democrat members into the EPP at the end of last year, several politicians slugged it out for the remaining three vacancies.

Fontaine and German MEP Ursula Schleicher succeeded in one round. But Anastassopoulos had to go to four rounds with British EPP member Bryan Cassidy before winning the day.