THE European Left party congress in Malaga over the weekend elected Heinz Bierbaum, head of international relations for Germany’s Die Linke, as its new president, replacing his compatriot Gregor Gysi.

Mr Bierbaum, formerly general secretary of Frankfurt region’s IG Metall union, called for a “critical evaluation” of the group’s future given the reverses suffered by left-wing parties across the continent.

He acknowledged that member parties, which include the French, Spanish, Finnish, Austrian and Moldovan communist parties, Portugal’s Left Bloc, Die Linke and many more, have “different positions on whether the EU can be reformed” — but that should not stand in the way of greater co-operation between parties.