Europe nominates new commissioners
The European Commission has slimmed down its College of Commissioners under President Ursula von der Leyen with 26 vice presidents and commissioners being nominated for her second term.
The college of Commissioners has six vice president and 20 commissioners with multiple roles, which with von der Leyen from Germany represent all 27 member states. The Commission had faced accusations of too many bureaucrats and issues with governance as the previous Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, resigned abruptly ahead of the announcement.
The appointments are aimed at strengthening Europe’s technology sovereignty, security and democracy with a competitive, decarbonised and circular economy and designing a ‘bold’ industrial strategy with a focus on innovation and investment.
Negotiations as von der Leyen wins second term at the European Commission
“This is reflected in the titles of the six Executive Vice-Presidents,” said von der Leyen. “Each Member of the College is equal and each Commissioner has an equal responsibility to deliver on our priorities. That means that all Commissioners must work together. In this spirit, each Executive Vice-President will also have a portfolio to focus on for which they will have to work with other Commissioners,” she said. “This is also why we do not have the extra layer of Vice-Presidents for a leaner structure that is more interactive and interlinked.”
She had been looking to increase the number of female commissioners.
“We now have 11 women in the College I propose today. That is 40%. When I received the first set of nominations and candidates, we were on track for around 22% women and 78% men. That was unacceptable. So I worked with the Member States and we were able to improve the balance to 40% women and 60% men.”
There are six Executive Vice-Presidents, four women and two men (the full list is below)
- Teresa Ribera from Spain will be Executive Vice-President of a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition. She will also be responsible for Competition policy.
- Henna Virkkunen from Finland will be the Executive Vice-President for Tech-Sovereignty, Security and Democracy. She will also be responsible for the portfolio on digital and frontier technologies.
- Stéphane Séjourné, the French replacement for Breton, will be the Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy. He will also be responsible for the Industry, SMEs and the Single Market portfolio which will have to face Intel pulling out of its leading edge fab in Germany and assembly plant in Poland.
- Roxana Mînzatu of Romania is proposed as Executive Vice-President for People, Skills and Preparedness as skills are a key area.
There are 20 commissioners, with Maroš Šefčovič of Slovakia as Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security as well as the liaison with the UK. This is a new portfolio which also includes customs policy, and has been key for the battery projects across Europe. He is also Commissioner for Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency.
- Valdis Dombrovskis from Latvia will also have a double role. He will be the Commissioner for Economy and Productivity as well as Commissioner for Implementation and Simplification.
- Andrius Kubilius from Lithuania will be the Commissioner for Defence and Space. He will work on developing the European Defence Union and boosting investment and industrial capacity for the space strategy.
- Jessika Roswall will be the Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy and is charged with helping develop a more circular and more competitive economy.
- Dan Jørgensen of Denmark will be the Commissioner for Energy and Housing, the first in the role.
- Ekaterina Zaharieva of Bulgaria will be Commissioner for Research and Innovation.
- “We must put research and innovation, science and technology at the centre of our economy. She will help ensure that we invest more and focus our spending on strategic priorities and on groundbreaking innovation,” said von der Leyen.
Once the European Parliament has received the official letter of the Council in agreement with the President of the Commission, it will proceed with the formal proceedings for the nomination of the new college.
Full list of Commissioners-designate
- Teresa Ribera Rodríguez, Spain, Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition
- Henna Virkkunen, Finland, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy
- Stéphane Séjourné, France, Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy
- Kaja Kallas, Estonia, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission
- Roxana Mînzatu, Romania, Executive Vice-President for People, Skills and Preparedness
- Raffaele Fitto, Italy, Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms
- Maroš Šefčovič, Slovakia, Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security; Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency
- Valdis Dombrovskis, Latvia, Commissioner for Economy and Productivity; Implementation and Simplification
- Dubravka Šuica, Croatia, Commissioner for Mediterranean
- Olivér Várhelyi, Hungary, Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare
- Wopke Hoekstra, the Netherland, Commissioner for Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth
- Andrius Kubilius, Lithuania, Commissioner for Defence and Space
- Marta Kos (pending formal nomination in Slovenia), Commissioner for Enlargement
- Jozef Síkela, Czechia, Commissioner for International Partnerships
- Costas Kadis, Cyprus, Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans
- Maria Luís Albuquerque, Portugal, Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union
- Hadja Lahbib, Belgium, Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management; Equality
- Magnus Brunner, Austria, Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration
- Jessika Roswall, Sweden, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy
- Piotr Serafin, Poland, Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud and Public Administration
- Dan Jørgensen, Denmark, Commissioner for Energy and Housing
- Ekaterina Zaharieva, Bulgaria, Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation
- Michael McGrath, Ireland, Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, and the Rule of Law
- Apostolos Tzitzikostas, Greece, Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism
- Christophe Hansen, Luxembourg, Commissioner for Agriculture and Food
- Glenn Micallef, Malta, Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport
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