Glenis Wilmott is the new leader of Labour in Europe

Congratulations go to my colleague Glenis Willmott, who has been elected the new leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party after a closely fought contest with Richard Howitt.

It is testament to the quality of the two candidates that only one vote separated Glenis from Richard with very little to chose between them.

I'm certain Glenis will make an excellent leader and has all the attributes to get the EPLP's views understood at home and in parliament. To learn more about Glenis there is a good BBC story here and you can also visit her website at www.gleniswillmott.eu

Glenis of course replaces Gary Titley, who has been leader since 2002, thereby just beating Barbara Castle as the longest serving leader of the Labour MEPs). He has stood down five months ahead of the next European elections, where he will also retire as an MEP. One example of the stability Gary provided is that during his seven year tenure, the Conservative delegation got through no fewer than five leaders!