A key week begins to define the next five years of the European Union. The candidacies and pools to determine which politician will occupy each portfolio within the European Commission will finally be announced this Tuesday in Strasbourg. The head of the Community Executive will configure what her team will be in the next legislative cycle, with new figures such as a Commissioner for Defense who, everything indicates, will end up in the hands of Lithuania. For the relevant positions such as that of head of the Economy, Italy has all the votes, and the Spanish Minister for Ecological TransitionTeresa Ribera, is nominated for the very relevant Concours portfolio.
The Spaniard is thus positioning himself for one of the responsibilities with more weight in the Community executive and, at the same time, with more independence from the presidency: Competition, as published by the Financial Time The position was until now in the hands of the Danish Margrethe Vestager, who has established herself as the scourge of the American technology giants. And liberal politics has won important battles such as the recent fine of 2.4 billion to Google or the refund of 13 billion in taxes to Apple.
But in the pools, Ribera is considered for other important positions within the European Commission. His profile allows him to become the next Commissioner of Climate and environment. He has a global vision of how to achieve this transition to a decarbonised economy that the EU is aiming for and, at the same time, he knows the most technocratic part of Brussels. When, in the second half of last year, Spain held the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, it was responsible for seeking consensus among the Twenty-Seven on complex agreements, such as the reform of the electricity market.
Another of the responsibilities for which Ribera’s name also appeared is that of Social, Digital and Green Transition Portfolio. A title for which he offers guarantees after having led the ecological transition in Spain with the emphasis, in parallel, on the social part that the just transition implies. His figure, in any case, would give him the profile of guarantor of the principles of the European Green Deal and, therefore, of the efforts to achieve a decarbonized economy in 2050 that make up this plan.
But other rumors are circulating in the corridors of Brussels and for this powerful portfolio of Competition, there is another name in the pools, that of the Austrian Minister of Finance, Magnus Brunner. Another of the names that has been buzzing for such a position is that of the Frenchman Thierry Breton, until now Commissioner for the Internal Market and who has competed with Vestager for the leading role in these battles against the technological giants. But the situation is somewhat uncertain because his appetite may not be satisfied if the rumors that place him in the first rank next executive vice president of industry and strategyA portfolio that would leave France with fewer responsibilities than it dreams of.
Economy
Among the most relevant positions within the executive community is the Economy portfolio. Appointed by Italy, the Minister for European Affairs, Raffaele Fitto, could take over one of the executive vice-presidencies with responsibilities in the economic field. The recovery from the pandemic would be part of his responsibilities, given that the Italian has been tasked with managing the recovery plan in Rome under the leadership of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
If confirmed, Italy would once again occupy one of the most important positions in the Community structure. In the last legislature, it was another Italian, Paolo Gentiloni, who was the Commissioner for the Economy. However, the Latvian Valdis Dombrovskis held the Economic Vice-Presidency, with powers also in the area of trade policy. Once again nominated by his country, Dombrovskis is nominated to occupy another executive Vice-Presidency, but this time focused on EU enlargement and the reconstruction of Ukraine. An area, in the latter area, in which he has been particularly vocal since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Energy and Budget
The puzzle of the distribution of posts in the next European Commission includes other important names in the economic segment. After leading the first part of the negotiations on the energy crisis, as the rotating presidency of the EU Council in the second half of 2022, the Czech Minister of Industry and TradeThere are rumors that Jozef Síkela will take over the energy portfolio.
Another important responsibility would fall to the Dutchman Wopke Hoekstra, who could become the next Commissioner of Trade and economic security. The former Dutch finance minister is currently the commissioner for climate action, replacing Frans Timmermans, who left the post to run for election in the Netherlands.
One of the major battles that will open this legislative cycle will be the configuration of the EU budget for the next seven years. The competence to define the priority items and areas of the financing policy could fall to the Pole Piotr Serafin, who is appointed as the next Commissioner for the Budget. However, several profiles could correspond to this post and the designation could vary.
In search of balance
The distribution of posts seems delicate. The president of the European Commission will have to juggle to balance the appointment of commissioners in charge of gender issues, during a second term that began with Germany demanding that countries nominate more women. Only seven of the 26 candidates were women, now the distribution is ten to 16. Conservative politics will have to balance the ambitions of political parties, since the socialists already expressed last week their discontent with a distribution of posts in parties that feel underrepresented.
Delay due to Slovenia
It will be Tuesday that the head of the Community Executive will announce the composition of the next College of Commissioners, both the names and the political areas that will compose it. A distribution of chairs initially planned for Wednesday last week and which disrupted Slovenia. It was a last minute change in your candidate’s application the reason for such a delay.
Ljubljana decided this week to present a new candidatediplomat Marta Kos, instead of his first candidate, Tomaz Vesel, former president of the Court of Auditors. And to achieve such a turnaround, the Slovenian Parliament had to give its approval last Friday. This is why a new meeting of the Conference of Presidents, similar to the meeting of the Congress spokespersons, was organized in Strasbourg on Tuesday.
But this is not the final step to form the College of Commissioners. The names and positions proposed by the head of the Community Executive must be ratified by the European Parliament by a simple majority. The vote, scheduled for the end of October, could be postponed until November.
