European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced her proposed new team of European Commissioners on Tuesday – but some of the choices have already attracted criticisms over possible conflicts of interest, far-right ties and revolving doors.
After weeks of uncertainty and delays, von der Leyen finally announced the list of candidates for the new Commission to Members of the European Parliament on Tuesday.
With the dust barely settled, key critiques were raised among civil society and progressive political groups in the Parliament. Observers have questioned the new Commission's gender balance, the future of the Green Deal, the inclusion of a far-right vice president and a strong focus on corporate interests over workers' rights.
The European Women’s Lobby voiced their frustrations at the lack of gender balance (40%) and the secondary priority for equality given to Belgium's Hadja Lahbib. "Equality deserves its own Commissioner, not just a footnote in an overloaded portfolio," the organisation reacted on social media, calling it "unacceptable."
Another more controversial decision in von der Leyen's new casting list is the name switch of the main social affairs role from 'Quality Jobs and Social Rights' to 'People, Skills and Preparedness'. This is being largely received by European trade unions as a move which could weaken workers' rights. The announcement comes only 24 hours after thousands of workers marched in Brussels to demand action to protect jobs.
On Tuesday, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) called on von der Leyen to "urgently reinstate" the previous portfolio shortly after the announcement. Every European Commission since the 1970s has included a Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs (or Jobs and Social Rights, as it has been called since 2019).
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen presenting her new team on Tuesday 17 September 2024. Credit: European Union
"Today’s proposal is full of portfolios which unfortunately sound like they've been drawn up on a corporate away-day rather than in response to the priorities of working people," Esther Lynch, General Secretary of the ETUC, said on Tuesday.
"This Commission, which is imbalanced when it comes to gender as well as political priorities, has undoubtedly started on the wrong foot with working people and now has a lot of work to do to gain their trust."
Corporate conflicts
Climate advocates continue to be concerned by the gradual watering down of the European Green Deal, amid an intensified lobbying push to refocus the green transition with an emphasis on European industry and competitiveness. This culminated in the announcement of a post in charge of industrial strategy, which was given to France's Stephane Séjourné.
However, according to the non-profit advocacy group Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO), intense corporate lobbying took place in the months before von der Leyen published her plans for the next term in July, with most having demands linked to an "industrial deal".
"It’s shocking to see such an astonishing number of candidate-Commissioners with a background in the corporate world. This creates a serious risk of conflicts of interest and pro-corporate bias," Corporate Europe Observatory Research and Campaign Coordinator Olivier Hoedeman said on Tuesday. "Von der Leyen has given many of these candidate-Commissioners portfolios that make these risks extremely acute."
After having analysed the curricula of the new candidates, CEO pointed at the more controversial appointments, alleging instances of possible conflicts of interest.
Candidate-Commissioner for Climate, Wopke Hoekstra (The Netherlands) faced a parliamentary investigation in 2023 for allegedly promoting oil and gas exploration in the Netherlands for personal financial gain. Furthermore, he used his role as a Dutch senator while partnering with McKinsey, and was also named in the Pandora Papers for offshore dealings.
Wopke Hoekstra, European Commissioner for Climate Action, holds a press conference with international journalists following an official visit to Beijing, China on 16 November, 2023. Credit: European Union
Marta Kos (Slovenia), the candidate-Commissioner for Enlargement, is currently employed as a Senior Adviser at Kreab, one of the biggest corporate lobbying consultancies in Brussels, whose clients include Amazon, Google and BP.
Ekaterina Zaharieva (Bulgaria), in charge of startups, research and innovation, was accused in 2018 by a former employee-turned-whistleblower of running a "cash-for-passports" scam, selling passports to foreigners and granting them visa-free travel across the European Union.
According to CEO, the candidate for financial services Maria Luís Albuquerque (Portugal), "has a worrying revolving door history" which includes moving jobs from being Portuguese Minister of Finance to joining the UK-based debt collector which was handling a Portuguese financial services group's debts.
According to EU procedure, the European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee will now evaluate all the candidate Commissioners' declarations of financial interests, before then facing hearings with MEPs.
Far-right Fitto
Italy's choice Raffaele Fitto will also face serious questions from Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Greens/EFA and The Left groups during these Commissioner hearings in the European Parliament.
Beyond those questioning the suitability of a far-right politician being in charge of a "cohesion" portfolio, as pointed out by French MEP Manon Aubry (The Left), CEO's research points to the fact that Fitto has been involved in several trials for bribery and corruption. In one case, he was sentenced to a five-year ban from public office and one year's imprisonment, but was later acquitted.
Just last week, S&D Group President Iratxe García warned the European Commission against undermining gender balance and proactively bringing the far-right group European Conservative and Reformists (ECR) into the executive team of the Commission, as it "would be the recipe to lose progressive support."
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Credit : European Union
While both have now been realised, García said on Tuesday that the new Commission has "good and bad" aspects, but Fitto's appointment is "a political problem." The group is also "looking forward" to the mission letters for more details. Renew Europe also welcomed the large number of portfolios given to their group.
In the Greens/EFA camp, while they did welcome the "clear commitment" to the European Green Deal with her new candidates, Bas Eickhout MEP, co-leader of the Greens/EFA Group, said: "We need clarity on how the new portfolios dealing with climate change and decarbonisation will work in practice."
The group, however, doubled down on their opposition to the inclusion of Fitto, which was also echoed by Martin Schirdewan, the leader of The Left in the European Parliament group.
"Appointing Raffaele Fitto could create a dangerous shift towards the far-right in the Commission and endanger the pro-democratic majority in the European Parliament that voted for Ursula von der Leyen in July," commented Terry Reintke MEP, co-leader of the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament.
Von der Leyen will need support from both socialists and greens in the upcoming commissioner-designate hearings in the European Parliament, which will see her new team confirmed. Traditionally, this is not an easy task for candidates who are closely scrutinised by MEPs. On some occasions, it has even resulted in reshuffling and changing the line-up.
Indeed, the Greens/EFA have their eyes on the Italian commissioner: "We will not give Raffaele Fitto an easy ride," Reintke concluded.
