ALDE open meeting with top Syrian opposition general

In 1972, he became President of the Liberal Flemish Students' Union in Ghent and, four years later, was elected as a City Councillor there.  Keen to follow his interest in national politics, Guy went on to take a number of high profile posts including Political Secretary to Willy De Clercq, National President of the Party for Freedom and Progress (PVV), an MP in the House of Representatives, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Budget, a Senator, and National President of the PVV and National President of the Flemish Liberals and Democrats (VLD).

In July 1999 he became Prime Minister of Belgium, heading three separate governments over the course of nearly ten years.

In June 2009 Guy Verhofstadt was elected to the European Parliament where he will pursue his interests in European politics after winning the unanimous support of the ALDE Group in their leadership contest.

ALDE is the third largest political group in the center of the European Parliament, currently with 85 mostly liberal MEPs, holding the balance of power between the left and right. ALDE is led by former Belgian Prime minister Guy Verhofstadt.

ALDE is a pro-European party and has European Parliament MEPs from 21 of the 27 member states who come together with shared values and a positive vision for the European Union.