Lawmakers are vetting the EU chief’s new team. It might be tough but she has the right on her side

BRUSSELS (AP) — Five months aft nan European Union lurched to nan governmental right, nan power of nationalist and populist parties will spell connected nationalist show successful Brussels connected Monday erstwhile lawmakers vet nan projected caller members of nan EU’s progressively powerful executive branch.

Over 5 days of hearings, nan EU parliamentarians will grill 26 apical officials — nominated by their nationalist governments — to found whether they are suitable to lead nan adjacent European Commission connected policies for illustration agriculture, trade, economical affairs, wellness aliases migration.

The commission is nan only EU assemblage pinch nan powerfulness to draught laws which, erstwhile passed by nan Parliament and nan assembly of personnel states, use successful each 27 countries of nan bloc. They screen everything from h2o value to information protection to title policy.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen assembled her new-look executive successful September, seeking to equilibrium delicate political, geographical and gender concerns wrong a squad that will lead nan European task for nan adjacent 5 years.

The immense mostly of nan would-be commissioners travel from nan correct of nan governmental spectrum, mostly nan European People’s Party (EPP), a blimpish EU-wide governmental family that counts von der Leyen arsenic a personnel and is nan biggest successful nan parliament. That should makes things easier for her.

Despite that advantage, nan EPP has already worked pinch hard-right groups — including Italian Premier Georgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy, which has neo-fascist roots, and stridently nationalist lawmakers from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s ruling Fidesz — to unafraid majorities successful nan European Parliament.

Other pro-European parties were weakened successful nan June 6-9 EU elections and von der Leyen tin run without them. The second-biggest group — nan center-left Socialists and Democrats — seems fresh to rubber-stamp her team. Its leaders opportunity it does not person a “kill list” of nominees that it intends to remove.

A committee that’s difficult to disregard

The committee is akin to a authorities cabinet, pinch commissioners alternatively of ministers. But it proposes laws that power each aspects of nan lives of astir 450 cardinal group successful nan 27 countries that dress up nan world’s biggest trading bloc. Von der Leyen is nan leader of much than 33,000 employees.

The committee handles waste and acquisition talks, sealing agreements pinch EU partners successful nan extracurricular world and managing disputes astatine nan World Trade Organization. It’s besides a powerful title watchdog, whose power has been felt by tech giants for illustration Apple, Google and Meta.

Von der Leyen’s powerfulness is growing. Her squad led nan European thrust to secure COVID-19 vaccines, and whipped up a massive rescue package to thief Europe’s economies header pinch nan costs of trying to extremity nan pandemic spreading. It besides helped nan EU upwind nan power situation sparked by Russia’s warfare connected Ukraine.

New faces to correspond Europe connected nan world stage

This is von der Leyen’s 2nd term. More than half nan nominees — 14 of them, compared to 10 past clip — are from EPP parties, for illustration her. Ten of them are women. Von der Leyen, a German, is keeping Europe’s different awesome powers France, Italy and Spain adjacent by her side.

To nan disappointment of mainstream parties, she has penciled successful Meloni state Raffaele Fitto arsenic a caller executive vice president — 1 of 5 — to oversee “cohesion policy,” which helps finance infrastructure projects pinch a large portion of nan EU’s monolithic budget.

Former French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné was made a VP and secured nan manufacture portfolio. Spanish Socialist Teresa Ribera, different VP, has a powerful station combining nan modulation toward a greenish system and title policies.

Former Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas will beryllium von der Leyen’s overseas argumentation chief. Ultimately, though, they will each reply to nan president.

The first hurdle: confirmation hearings

Nominees are questioned for 3 hours by nan leaders of committees and elder lawmakers astir intimately linked to their portfolios. The nominees must show wide competence, a committedness to Europe, independence, and bully communications skills.

Immediately after, an information is made down closed doors. Candidates must triumph a two-thirds mostly vote. If they autumn short, lawmakers tin inquire further questions successful penning aliases petition a further 90-minute grilling.

Some candidates are deemed not bully enough. Lawmakers mightiness cull others arsenic a show of strength. Three were vetoed successful 2019. Sometimes portfolios are switched among nan commissioners, aliases their responsibilities redefined, to fulfill nan parliament’s demands.

The ballot results should stay concealed until nan full proceeding process ends connected Nov. 12. But fixed nan precocious governmental stakes, lawmakers will astir apt leak nan news. Any group that vetoes a campaigner risks seeing their ain knocked retired successful revenge.

Some look much astatine consequence than others

Von der Leyen’s EPP and nan difficult correct ganged up to group nan proceeding agenda. As a result, nan astir arguable campaigner — Italy’s Fitto — is nan first of nan six VPs to beryllium questioned connected nan last time of hearings. Any mainstream lawmakers who target him consequence seeing their favourite ousted successful return.

One of nan first candidates to make his lawsuit will beryllium Glenn Micallef — nan socialist nominee for youth, civilization and athletics — who hails from Malta, nan EU’s smallest country. He’s been branded arsenic a governmental lightweight, compared to nan erstwhile ministers and premiers being questioned. His destiny could group nan tone.

Marta Kos, a wide from Slovenia foreseen arsenic nan adjacent enlargement commissioner, is inexperienced too. She’s besides been criticized for being pro-Russian.

Oliver Varhelyi is Orbán’s man successful Brussels. He’s been fixed nan wellness and animal use portfolio. Lawmakers still seethe astir a basking mic incident successful which he referred to them arsenic “idiots.” Some uncertainty nan contented of putting him successful complaint of wellness aft Orbán opted for Russian and Chinese-made vaccines alternatively than subordinate nan EU’s associated purchasing effort. But voting him down poses risks. Orbán has been astatine warfare pinch nan committee and he could simply garbage to sanction a replacement, blocking nan full process.