ABSTRACT
The political groups are the backbone of European Parliament (EP) internal organisation. The average members of the Parliament normally has an assistant both in Brussels and/or Strasbourg and in the constituency. While much of the literature has tended to view committees as relatively independent arenas of decision-making vis-a-vis the parliamentary parties, the argument emphasises the interdependence of the EP committees and the EP party groups, with the ascendancy of the latter over the former contributing to the cohesion of the party groups. The chapter analyses the evolution, internal structure, and standing of transnational political groups in the European Parliament. National party delegations, in particular the larger ones, often have their own hierarchical structures. The structure can be divided into two closely related and partially overlapping levels: the group leadership and the ordinary members. Political groups, at least the larger ones, have their own whips.
