Maltese member of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola (European People's Party, EPP) was elected the new President of the European Parliament on Tuesday, having received support from 458 MEPs in the first round of the vote.

David Sassoli was a fighter, he fought for Europe, for us, for this parliament, Metsola said in her address about her predecessor who died on 11 January, adding that she would continue along that path.

The new EP president said that the EP should get out of Strasbourg and Brussels and get closer to European cities, support the Conference on the Future of Europe and secure the success of that democratic project.

We particularly must listen to young people, she said, noting that 2022 was the European Year of Youth.

Metsola also called for a joint struggle against climate change, noting that it was possible to protect the environment while strengthening the economy.

Metsola is the third female EP President after Simone Veil (1979-1982) and Nicole Fontaine (1999-2002).

She has been in the EP since 2013, and as a student in 2004, she conducted the campaign for Malta’s EU accession.

Her rivals were Alice Kuhnke of Sweden (Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance), who won 101 votes, and Sira Rego of Spain (Left Group), who won 57 votes.