The liberal leader in the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt had to backtrack on a planned alliance with Italian politician Beppe Grillo on Monday (9 January) after his own troops rebelled against the move.
Grillo, the anti-euro and anti-migrant leader of the Five Star Movement (M5S), Italy's most popular party, had announced on Sunday that he was leaving the eurosceptic Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy (EFDD) group in the parliament, led by Ukip's Nigel Farage, Back our independent journalism by becoming a supporting memberGet EU news that matters
Eszter Zalan is a Hungarian journalist who worked for Brussels-based news portal EUobserver specialising in European politics, focusing on populism and Brexit.
Eszter Zalan is a Hungarian journalist who worked for Brussels-based news portal EUobserver specialising in European politics, focusing on populism and Brexit.