EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER
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The Barroso Commission, the current commission,
A 'European Commissioner' is a member of the 27-member European Commission. Each Commissioner within the college holds a specific portfolio and are led by the President of the European Commission. In simple terms they are the equivalent of national ministers.
| Contents |
| Appointment |
| Commissioner's oath |
| Accountability |
| Portfolios |
| Politicisation |
| Reform |
| See also |
| External links |
| References |
Appointment
The Commissioners are appointed by the member-states together with the President, who decides upon their portfolio. The Commission in its entirety then seeks the approval of the Parliament and the Council of Ministers (by qualified majority).
It should be noted however that although Commissioners are allocated between member-states they do not represent their states; instead they are to act in European interests. Normally a member-state will nominate someone of the same political party as that which forms the government of the day. There are exceptions such as Commissioner Burke (of Fine Gael) was nominated by Taoiseach Haughey (of Fianna Fáil), or where larger states had two seats, they often went to the two major parties such as in the United Kingdom.
Partly due to the member-state selection procedure, only 8 of the current 27 Commissioners are women and no minorities have ever served on a Commission to date. (''more on the makeup of the current commission'')
Commissioner's oath
Each Commissioner is required to take an oath, officially before the Court of Justice of the European Communities, officially the 'Solemn undertaking before the Court of Justice by the President and the new members of the European Commission'. The oath taken by the members of the current Barroso Commission is below[1];
Leonard Orban taking his oath before taking office in 2007
Accountability
In addition to its role in approving a new Commission, the European Parliament has the power at any time to force the entire Commission to resign through a vote of no confidence. This requires a vote that makes up at least two-thirds of those voting and a majority of the total membership of the Parliament. While it has never used this power, it threatened to use it against the Commission headed by Jacques Santer in 1999 over allegations of corruption. In response, the Santer Commission resigned ''en mass'' of its own accord, the only time a Commission has done so.
Portfolios
The make up and distribution of portfolios are determined by the Commission President and do not always correspond with the Commissions departments (Directorate-Generals). While some have been fairly consistent in make up between each Commission, some have only just been created or are paired with others. With a record number of Commissioners in 2007, the portfolios have become very thin even though the responsibilities of the commission have increased.[1]
Politicisation
Margot Wallström: "the EU has to get more political and controversial"
Commissioners are also required to remain above national politics while exercising their duties in the Commission in order to maintain independence. However that requirement has slowly been eroded as the institution has become more politicised. During the Prodi Commission, Anna Diamantopoulou (Employment and Social Affairs) took leave from the Commission to participate in the 2004 Greek elections and resigned when she won a seat despite her party losing. Romano Prodi campaigned in the 2001 Italian elections while still President.[2]
Recently, Louis Michel (Development & Humanitarian Aid) has announced that he is to go on unpaid leave to take part in the 2007 Belgian elections.[3] Although he has positioned himself so as not to be elected, the European Parliament's development committee asked the Parliament's legal service to assess if his participation violates the treaties. [2]
Michel claimed that politicisation of this manner is part of reconnecting the Union with its citizens. The Commission revised its code of conduct for commissioners allowing them to; "be active members of political parties or trade unions." To participate in an election campaign they are required to "withdraw from the work of the commission for the duration of the campaign."
Politicisation has even gone so far as commissioners backing national candidates, with Neelie Kroes (Competition) backing Angela Merkel in the 2005 German elections and Margot Wallström (Institutional Relations & Communication Strategy) backing Ségolène Royal in the 2007 French elections.[2] Wallström defended this claiming that the EU has to get more political and controversial as being a vital role in communicating the Commission.[5] Wallström has been notable for engaging in debate and politics, she was the first commissioner to start her own blog.
Reform
The number of Commissioners is currently one per member state. This has been seen as making the Commission grow too large with each expansion. Under the European Constitution the size would be reduced to two-thirds of the members, rotated between them.[6] Other ideas that have been floated are the creation of junior members for smaller states[7], the creation of "super-commissioners"[8]
See also
★ Barroso Commission (the current commission)
★ List of European Commissioners by nationality
★
★ Vice-President of the European Commission
External links
★ Commission's website ec.europa.eu
★ Commissioners code of conduct ec.europa.eu
References
1. Prodi to Have Wide, New Powers as Head of the European Commission iht.com 16/04/99
2. EU commissioner backs Royal in French election euobserver.com
3. Commissioner Louis Michel to stand in the Belgian parliamentary elections europa.eu
4. EU commissioner backs Royal in French election euobserver.com
5. Brussels struggles with communication policy euobserver.com 09/05/07
6. What the EU constitution says news.bbc.co.uk 22/06/04
7. EU divided by plan for ‘second-class’ commissioners ft.com 07/01/07
8. 'Big three' strike deal on super commissioner, French VAT cuts, 1% ceiling euractiv.com 19/02/05
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