EP - Electing the Commission

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The EP website has a section on the procedure for the electing the Commission here http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/default.htm?language=EN.

To date, Barrosso, the Commission President has been re-elected. All others (bar possibly Ashton) are still nominees. Next step in the process is that the EP will do formal hearings for each of them in January. These are by no means easy for the nominees and I'd suspect some of the nominees could hit problems.

Names I suspect we'll hear more of over the next few years are: Reding (Justice), Almunia (Competition), Kallas (Transport). I'd also suspect we may hear less of Ashton (External Relations) and Barnier (Internal Markets which includes Banking regulation) than might be initally thought.

Thoughts anyone? Or just comments on the hearings when they happen...

View

To update the above, the European Parliament's hearing on the nominees for the new European Commission runs this week. First up are Ashton (External Affairs) and Lewandowski (Budgetary Affairs).

Expectations are that the EP will probably not accept the proposed Commission in its current form.

Timetable for the hearings is here at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/program/default.htm?language=EN

The EP's written Questionaires to the proposed Commissioners and their responses can be found here: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/documents/default.htm?language=EN&folioId=3#

Details on the hearings procedure are here at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/procedure/default.htm?language=EN

Scofflaw

There's a good run-down of the issues here:

While it is still possible to find MEPs who believe that it is a good general principle for the Parliament to exercise its prerogative and to reject a couple of candidates, such an outcome is unlikely. Delays to the Lisbon treaty have already put off the advent of a new Commission from 1 November to 1 February at the earliest. What was supposed to happen was that after the European Parliament elections in June 2009, MEPs would approve a new Commission president and then hold hearings for nominated commissioners immediately after the summer break. They would have held a vote on the Commission in October so that the new team could take over on 1 November. With that timetable, the MEPs might have sought a repeat of 2004, challenging Barroso's nominees. But that timetable was impossible, given the uncertainty over whether the Nice treaty or the Lisbon treaty would apply, because it affected how many commissioners would be appointed.

And Parliament's summary of the Baroness Ashton hearings is here.

cordially,
Scofflaw

Jk_Eire

The interviews are all broadcast live too. Maire Geoghegan Quinn is today (wednesday) at 15:30. http://europarltv.europa.eu/

She has been nominated for the Research, Innovation and Science portfolio.

Should have a relatively easy ride I suspect with a few tough questions here and there in relation to how she will promote green energy perhaps.

View

It looks like three of the Commisson nominees are in trouble. All as a result of poor performance at their hearings. Jeleva (Internation Aid), Šemeta (Audit and Anti-Fraud) and, most surprising of all, Kroes (Digital Agenda) who was Competition Commissioner in the last Commission.

Links are:
Jeleva http://euobserver.com/18/29254
Šemeta http://euobserver.com/18/29256
Kroes http://euobserver.com/9/29277

In addition, the EPP has come up with some interesting ideas for the future. http://euobserver.com/9/29263

I suspect the EPP's ideas could upset some people. :-)

Scofflaw

View wrote: »

It looks like three of the Commisson nominees are in trouble. All as a result of poor performance at their hearings. Jeleva (Internation Aid), Šemeta (Audit and Anti-Fraud) and, most surprising of all, Kroes (Digital Agenda) who was Competition Commissioner in the last Commission.

Links are:
Jeleva http://euobserver.com/18/29254
Šemeta http://euobserver.com/18/29256
Kroes http://euobserver.com/9/29277

In addition, the EPP has come up with some interesting ideas for the future. http://euobserver.com/9/29263

I suspect the EPP's ideas could upset some people. :-)

Interesting - it does look quite a lot like the Parliament is holding Kroes 'hostage' against the EPP demands. The objections to the other two look genuine, and I doubt they could really be used as bargaining chips - Kroes, on the other hand, Barroso will really want on board.

cordially,
Scofflaw

evercloserunion

I imagine Kroes was probably having an off-day. I can't imagine she would be bad for the job, she has a reputation as being an excellent competition commissioner at a time when the Commission dealt a lot with the IT sector.

The EPP's blackmailing tactic is interesting. I suppose there's nothing inherently wrong with it and it could even be a very positive step if the democratically elected institution starts exercising its weight in relation to the unelected institution. on the other hand, I have a feeling that this is not how the process was intended to play out when the Treaties were being negotiated. Also, the EPP shouldn't use this to serve themselves only; it would be better if the demands came from the EP as a whole rather than one party (even if it is the largest grouping).

Scofflaw

evercloserunion wrote: »

I imagine Kroes was probably having an off-day. I can't imagine she would be bad for the job, she has a reputation as being an excellent competition commissioner at a time when the Commission dealt a lot with the IT sector.

The EPP's blackmailing tactic is interesting. I suppose there's nothing inherently wrong with it and it could even be a very positive step if the democratically elected institution starts exercising its weight in relation to the unelected institution. on the other hand, I have a feeling that this is not how the process was intended to play out when the Treaties were being negotiated. Also, the EPP shouldn't use this to serve themselves only; it would be better if the demands came from the EP as a whole rather than one party (even if it is the largest grouping).

Reading around, it looks as if Kroes continued working on her existing brief, and didn't use the time to come up to speed on her new brief. The Parliament will have known that, which means they can single out someone who Barroso won't want dropped and bend him over the barrel on it. Kroes will almost certainly do OK on a second interview, but that's to be closed door, so if the Parliament claim she fluffed that one too, it's harder to argue.

Some of the reasons why I favoured Lisbon was exactly these kind of shifts in the power balance in the EU - Lisbon contained, I think, a lot of levers where the Parliament could grab more weight. Historically, the giving of a veto over everything bar foreign/defence policy has been an immensely important milestone for parliaments.

cordially,
Scofflaw

evercloserunion

Have they all been elected today? I heard that Almunia has been confirmed as the new competition commissioner.

Scofflaw

evercloserunion wrote: »

Have they all been elected today? I heard that Almunia has been confirmed as the new competition commissioner.

They definitely haven't been elected, anyway - I take it the confirmation means that there are no objections to Almunia, so that whatever happens to the other Commissioners-designate, Almunia will be on board.

cordially,
Scofflaw

View

Scofflaw is correct. They haven't been elected. In fact the last two of the Commission nominees are having their hearings this morning. Also, Kroes is definitely being called back for a second meeting. No idea about the other two nominees (Jeleva and Šemeta).

After that the EP will be having meetings to evaluate the nominees and decide how to vote. I'd imagine that will be the time for the EP to push its case for anything new that it wants (i.e. if it wants to have hearings for EU Ambassadors in future and/or any other ideas it may have).

The debate and vote by the Parliament is scheduled for next Tuesday the 26th.

You can see the schedule on the right of this link: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/procedure/default.htm?language=EN

K-9

View wrote: »

Scofflaw is correct. They haven't been elected. In fact the last two of the Commission nominees are having their hearings this morning. Also, Kroes is definitely being called back for a second meeting. No idea about the other two nominees (Jeleva and Šemeta).

After that the EP will be having meetings to evaluate the nominees and decide how to vote. I'd imagine that will be the time for the EP to push its case for anything new that it wants (i.e. if it wants to have hearings for EU Ambassadors in future and/or any other ideas it may have).

The debate and vote by the Parliament is scheduled for next Tuesday the 26th.

You can see the schedule on the right of this link: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/procedure/default.htm?language=EN

Jeleva has withdrawn:
http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0119/eu.html

evercloserunion

It's funny to see party politics play out at EU level, with the PES and EPP taking digs at each other.

Anyway, it's not good for us to be left lingering in uncertainty as to our humanitarian aid commissioner given the situation in Haiti.

View

The European Parliament plenary vote to approve/reject the new Commission takes place today (Tuesday 9th) between 13:30-14:30 CET.

Link to the live broadcast of the EP session is: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/wps-europarl-internet/frd/live/live-video?eventId=20100209-0900-PLENARY_SESSION&language=en

Agenda for the session is here:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=AGENDA&reference=20100209&secondRef=SIT&format=XML&language=EN