# Europe of Nations and Freedom

**Europe of Nations and Freedom** (ENF) was a political group in the [European Parliament](https://www.edgepedia.org/european-parliament) of right-wing and Eurosceptic national parties, created in June 2015 during the 2014-2019 parliamentary term and succeeded by the [Identity and Democracy](https://www.edgepedia.org/identity-and-democracy) (ID) group in June 2019.<sup>[1](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20150622IPR69217/opening-new-europe-of-nations-and-freedom-group-declared-formed)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/files/be-heard/eurobarometer/2019/review_of_european_and_national_election_results_2019/incoming_ep_2019.pdf)</sup>

| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Political group in the European Parliament, organized by political affiliation across national delegations<sup>[3](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/637956/EPRS_BRI%282019%29637956_EN.pdf)</sup> |
| Founded | Launched 15 June 2015; foundation declaration filed in due form, announced at plenary by Vice-President Antonio Tajani (EPP, IT)<sup>[1](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20150622IPR69217/opening-new-europe-of-nations-and-freedom-group-declared-formed)</sup> |
| Size | 36 members at formation; 36 MEPs in the outgoing 2014-2019 Parliament's ranking of eight groups, and 37 (4.9% of 751 seats) as of 29 March 2019<sup>[1](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20150622IPR69217/opening-new-europe-of-nations-and-freedom-group-declared-formed)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/637956/EPRS_BRI%282019%29637956_EN.pdf)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[4](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/635515/EPRS_BRI%282019%29635515_EN.pdf)</sup> |
| Main members | Front National (France), Northern League (Italy), Freedom Party of Austria, Vlaams Belang (Flanders), and the Dutch Party for Freedom<sup>[5](https://academic.oup.com/book/36661/chapter-abstract/321676284)</sup> |
| Successor | Identity and Democracy (ID), established on 13 June 2019 as the successor of ENF<sup>[2](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/files/be-heard/eurobarometer/2019/review_of_european_and_national_election_results_2019/incoming_ep_2019.pdf)</sup> |
| Affiliated European party | Mouvement pour une Europe des Nations et des Libertés (MENL), registered and funded under Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014<sup>[6](https://epgencms.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/upload/b6a930d5-6d3c-447a-8f86-7e4e5cffb7d1/00_Decision_2017_09_14_MENL_EN.pdf)</sup> |

## Formation in June 2015

When the group was created, it became the eighth political group of the 2014-2019 parliamentary term, which had opened with seven groups.<sup>[3](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/637956/EPRS_BRI%282019%29637956_EN.pdf)</sup> European Parliament rules require a minimum of 23 Members, elected in at least one quarter of the EU's Member States (seven countries at the time), for a group to be recognized, and a new group must file a statement containing its name, a political declaration of its shared purpose, and the names of its members and bureau.<sup>[7](https://eprs.europarl.europa.eu/contents/publications/EPRS/2024/06/EPRS_BRI%282024%29762337.html)</sup> The ENF's 36-strong foundation declaration was filed in due form and announced by Vice-President Antonio Tajani at the plenary opening.<sup>[1](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20150622IPR69217/opening-new-europe-of-nations-and-freedom-group-declared-formed)</sup>

## Membership and character

The group brought together parties of the European radical right: the Front National of France, the Northern League of Italy, the Austrian Freedom Party, the Flemish Vlaams Belang, and the Dutch Party for Freedom.<sup>[5](https://academic.oup.com/book/36661/chapter-abstract/321676284)</sup> A House of Commons Library briefing on the 2019 group formation describes ENF as the grouping in which the League and [National Rally](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-rally) and similar parties sat together in the outgoing Parliament, describing the successor ID group as an expanded version of it.<sup>[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/political-group-formation-in-the-european-parliament/)</sup>

Under the Parliament's rules, belonging to a group brings practical advantages over sitting as a non-attached Member: nominations for Parliament's President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors may only be made by a political group or by Members reaching a threshold of 36, speaking time in plenary is allocated by group, and groups receive higher funding for staff and activities from the Parliament's budget.<sup>[7](https://eprs.europarl.europa.eu/contents/publications/EPRS/2024/06/EPRS_BRI%282024%29762337.html)</sup> These incentives explain why nationalist parties that often oppose one another nationally still seek group status in [Strasbourg](https://www.edgepedia.org/strasbourg).

## Size through the term

The group's headcount moved only slightly during the term. A Parliament press kit of 28 June 2018 listed Europe of Nations and Freedom with 35 MEPs.<sup>[9](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/da/press-room/20180628BKG06841/european-parliament-press-kit-for-the-european-council-of-28-29-june-2018/5/political-groups-in-the-european-parliament)</sup> A European Parliament facts-and-figures briefing counts 37 ENF members (4.9% of the 751 seats) as of 29 March 2019, the smallest of the Parliament's eight groups at that point, behind the [Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy](https://www.edgepedia.org/europe-of-freedom-and-direct-democracy) group's 41.<sup>[4](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/635515/EPRS_BRI%282019%29635515_EN.pdf)</sup>

## Successor: Identity and Democracy

After the European elections of 23 to 26 May 2019, the Identity and Democracy group was established on 13 June 2019 as the successor of ENF.<sup>[2](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/files/be-heard/eurobarometer/2019/review_of_european_and_national_election_results_2019/incoming_ep_2019.pdf)</sup> The Commons Library briefing records that the new ID group included switchers from other groups, such as the [Alternative for Germany](https://www.edgepedia.org/alternative-for-germany), alongside the ENF parties and new entrants to the Parliament.<sup>[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/political-group-formation-in-the-european-parliament/)</sup> ID itself was later replaced in the 2024-2029 term, when it dissolved and two new groups, [Patriots for Europe](https://www.edgepedia.org/patriots-for-europe) and Europe of Sovereign Nations, emerged.<sup>[10](https://www.eliamep.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Working-Paper-130-EN.pdf)</sup>

## References

1. [Opening: new Europe of Nations and Freedom group declared formed, European Parliament press release, 24 June 2015](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20150622IPR69217/opening-new-europe-of-nations-and-freedom-group-declared-formed)
2. [Review of European and National Elections 2019, European Parliament](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/files/be-heard/eurobarometer/2019/review_of_european_and_national_election_results_2019/incoming_ep_2019.pdf)
3. [Rules on political groups in the European Parliament (2019 edition), EPRS](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/637956/EPRS_BRI%282019%29637956_EN.pdf)
4. [European Parliament: Facts and Figures, EPRS (2019)](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/635515/EPRS_BRI%282019%29635515_EN.pdf)
5. [Europe of Nations and Freedom: A Marriage of Love?, in McDonnell & Werner, International Populism, Oxford University Press](https://academic.oup.com/book/36661/chapter-abstract/321676284)
6. [Decision of 14 September 2017 concerning Mouvement pour une Europe des nations et des libertés, Official Journal of the European Union](https://epgencms.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/upload/b6a930d5-6d3c-447a-8f86-7e4e5cffb7d1/00_Decision_2017_09_14_MENL_EN.pdf)
7. [Rules on political groups in the European Parliament, EPRS briefing, 14 June 2024](https://eprs.europarl.europa.eu/contents/publications/EPRS/2024/06/EPRS_BRI%282024%29762337.html)
8. [Political Group formation in the European Parliament, House of Commons Library](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/political-group-formation-in-the-european-parliament/)
9. [Political groups in the European Parliament, European Parliament press kit, 28 June 2018](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/da/press-room/20180628BKG06841/european-parliament-press-kit-for-the-european-council-of-28-29-june-2018/5/political-groups-in-the-european-parliament)
10. [ELIAMEP Working Paper #130/2025](https://www.eliamep.gr/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Working-Paper-130-EN.pdf)

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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Politics and government › International relations › Foreign policy and state relations › Intergovernmental organizations › European intergovernmental organizations*

*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*

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