EU hearing week is hot grill
The EU hearings in Brussels are in full motion and will continue until the 19th. Catherine Ashton and Karel De Gucht have passed the test successfully, a whole string of hopefuls are to follow. As it says on the hearings website, the candidates are invited to public hearings by the appropriate parliamentary committee(s). They answer questions from MEPs to assess their abilities, particularly to deal with the issues in their portfolios. The committees' evaluations are then examined by Parliament's President and political group leaders.
The candidate Commissioners face a three houre Q&A 'firing squad' with MEPs. Karel De Gucht commented after his experience that it is quite a test. You could also read the stress on miss Ashton's face after her grilling, where she remained strong and upright.
Imagine to be in one of these candidates' shoes. The tempo of one minute questions and replies is exhausting. The question content is vast, ranging from your CV to political views. And the questions come at you in a variety of languages, with a translation in your other ear. You have to keep up your energy for three hours. And not make a mistake. Best not have a blackout on any subject, any name, geographic data or a political issues. But not only do you have to think fast and make no errors, your answer must be a smart and well formulated résumé of what you think and feel, while remaining inside the lines of where the Commission is going to. To make things more complex, you have to reply using terms and expressions for which in many cases the jargon is only available in English, in most cases not your mother tongue. And to top it all, you are questioned by a group of representatives of varied political colours and opinions, who had the time to prepare their specific question well and and not necessarily like you…
So these Question and Answer sessions are not a pick-nick, more like a barbecue, where each candidate is on the grill. The last time this happened not all candidates passed the test. Would former US Vice President candidate miss Sarah Palin have passed this BBQ session?
De Gucht: full support from Barrosso in Congo row
Karel De Gucht is in the middle of a new clash with Congo. After expressing sharp remarks, the Commissioner was declared an official persona non grata in the African country. During a debate in the European Parliament he had stated that "Congo is a mess. Almost everything has to be redone in the country".
This is not the first time De Gucht has openly criticized Congolese leadership and the sad state of affairs in the heart of Africa. The seeming paradox is that the man shows true love for the country and its people and that his expressed sentiments are based on abundant and correct information. In his former roles on the political arena, De Gucht has shown again and again to have a clear insight in the African political context in general and in Congolese affairs in particular. By formulating criticism, De Guch no doubt wanted to stimulate the change and reform process and call upon the leaders to "shape up and do better". But the opposite seems the result. De Gucht is 'quite a character' and boast a very direct style, intelligent and witty, confident. Enough to be perceived by some as arrogant, no doubt. The surprising interview by Bruno Giussani, European Director of TED Conferences, at the TEDx Brussels 2009 is a clear example of this crisp style.
It remains a thin line between stating facts to construct a better world and telling the truth and by doing so insulting the powers in place and blocking progress. As Development Commissioner Karel De Gucht had questioned whether aid provided to Kinshasa by EU nations was being put to good use. Was that wrong? The humanitarian situation in Congo is a crisis on a devastating scale. When confronted with hunger, poverty and corruption, mismanagement and incompetence, it can no longer be seen as an insult to state these obvious facts. These circumstances strangle an entire nation and push the people beyond poverty into a state of raw Darwinism, survival of the fittest. No democratic leader can accept that.
It seems doubtful this feud can ever be resolved. On Thursday, Congo government spokesman Lambert Mende said: "We note that here is a character who is incapable of having normal, dignified relations with our country". Yet EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton expressed the Commission's full support for De Gucht and last Thursday Jose Manuel Barroso also gave De Gucht his full backing. The EU is a major aid donor to the Democratic Republic Congo, sending some 300 million euros (430 million dollars) since 2003. It would seem logical and in the interest of Congo that any doubt on correct spending of that aid would be avoided.
Karel De Gucht will step up in front of the parliament for his hearing in order to be accepted as Commissioner for Trade; Catherine Ashton will be 'grilled' by the MP's today.
Barroso II portfolios announced
After the buzz and negociations of the last weeks on ‘who will get what’ the President of the European Commission announced his proposal for his Commission team.
On the website of the Swedish European presidency Barroso is quoted:
“I am pleased to be able to present this new Commission and want to thank the Member States for their excellent nominations. I welcome back thirteen of the old Commissioners and think we have achieved a good mix of skills, experience and gender”, said José Manuel Barroso when he announced the new Commission.
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, representing the Swedish EU Presidency, commented on Mr Barroso’s choice of Commission.
“I welcome President Barroso’s proposed new Commission. It is well composed and balanced, with clear divisions of responsibility within the Commission. Now the European Parliament will hear the proposed Commissioners. I am looking forward to this and I hope the Parliament will give its support to the proposal.” “I am very pleased that the proposal so clearly reflects the new role of the EU, which the Lisbon Treaty will bring, both in Europe and in the world. Now it is important that the new Commission can quickly begin its work to meet the challenges still facing the EU.”
Barroso nominated Connie Hedegard, Denmark’s climate minister, in charge of hosting the December UN climate conference in Copenhagen.
Other notable nominations include Joaquin Almunia as the European Union’s antitrust chief, Neelie Kroes, current antitrust chief as EU’s digital agenda commissioner and Karel De Gucht who will manage the trade portfolio.
Simon Taylor at the European Voice heads his article with ‘Big posts for large countries’. France secured the portfolio of internal market for Michel Barnier. who will also be responsibility for financial services. The ‘Voice’ also states the Liberals get their “reward’: Liberals get influential portfolios. Liberal Guy Verhofstadt in a VRT radio interview was pleased and stressed the importance of the fact that ‘all European economical issues will be in the hands of Liberals’.
Before the new Commission can take up its work, the European Parliament must approve the Commission as a whole. These “exam sessions’ might give some unexpected fireworks… to be continued.