Row over nominees risks delaying appointment of new EU commission

Jan 14, 2010, 14:04 GMT

Brussels - Socialist and conservative members of the European Parliament were locked in a struggle Thursday over nominees to the new European Commission that risks delaying the appointment of the EU's executive body.

The head of the Socialist and Democrats (S&D) group, Martin Schulz, told commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso that Bulgarian candidate Rumiana Jeleva, 'is not good enough for the job.'

In a press statement, Schulz invited Barroso 'to reflect on this matter and draw the necessary conclusions.'

Jeleva, 40, is her country's foreign minister and a vice president of the European People's Party (EPP), a pan-European grouping of Europe's conservative forces. She is tipped to become the EU's aid commissioner.

At a confirmation hearing on Tuesday, she was accused by liberal and socialist members legislators of lying about her ties to Bulgarian firm Global Consult when she made an official declaration of her financial interests.

After the hearing, representatives of the main political groups agreed to ask the commission and their own legal service for confirmation that Jeleva's declaration was in line with EU transparency rules, effectively freezing her application.

The EPP group denounced the move as a 'witch hunt' against Jeleva and in turn levelled accusations against Maros Sefcovic, Slovakia's socialist nominee for the post of commission vice president in charge of administration and inter-institutional relations.

Sefcovic, a career diplomat who holds the culture portfolio in the outgoing commission, allegedly claimed in 2005 that the Roma ethnic minority were 'exploiters of the Slovak welfare system.'

His staff issued a statement on Wednesday that he had 'no recollection of having said those words' and stressed that he 'deeply regrets if anything he may have said in the past has caused offence to anyone.'

But that was not enough to silence EPP critics. 'What we would like, besides this apology, is to go much further with this issue,' Livia Jaroka, a Hungarian MEP of Roma origin, said on Thursday.

She denied that the EPP's targeting of Sefcovic is linked to Jeleva's hounding by centre-left legislators, and explained that her group is waiting for the Slovakian candidate's hearing on Monday before expressing a definitive verdict on him.

But Jaroka did evoke the precedent of Rocco Buttiglione, the Italian would-be justice commissioner in 2004 who was forced to step down after offending legislators with comments on gays and women.

Under EU rules, each of the 26 designated commissioners has to attend a confirmation hearing before the parliament takes a vote of confidence in the whole body.

Legislators cannot veto single candidates, but they can threaten to veto the entire group unless certain nominees are replaced. The current hearings are set to run until Tuesday, after which parliament is set to debate them throughout next week, with a final vote set for January 26.

If parliament formally rejects one or more candidates, or asks for their portfolios to be changed, new hearings will have to be organised, putting into jeopardy the February 1 date suggested for the installation of the new commission.

Barroso's spokeswoman, Pia Ahrenkilde-Hansen, refused to be drawn over possible contingency plans. But she assured the press that Barroso 'is going to take into account the assessment of parliament on commissioner designates' before presenting his team for the final vote.

Hansen explained that the commission chief will 'certainly' reply to requests for information about Jeleva, but claimed he had not received any so far.