The hearings of the future European commissioners have begun in Brussels, which will establish whether the candidates nominated by the EU governments will pass the exam in the Chamber and will be able to take office in the new executive led by Ursula von der Leyen. Just as in national institutions a Government cannot be formed without the approval of Parliament, the same goes for the community executive, which needs the green light of the Assembly in Brussels and Strasbourg.
In this process, the hearings of the aspiring commissioners are a crucial moment for European democracy, in which Parliament tests each candidate on the topics of their portfolio, with questions and requests for clarification. A real question that can also result in the interviewee failing. But how do these hearings work specifically? How is the process structured?
The appointments of the President of the Commission
With the re-election last July of Ursula von der Leyen as head of the European Commission, the main objectives of the executive and the list of portfolios to be assigned were outlined, from traditional ones such as Health and Defense to new ones such as to the Mediterranean.
Each State designated a candidate and then the president of the Commission chose which role to assign to him. For example, the Italian Raffaele Fitto was assigned the role of executive vice president for Cohesion and Reforms. But now, like all the other candidates, he will be called upon to demonstrate not only his competence for his role, but also his integrity and transparency.
The check on conflicts of interest
Before the actual hearings, Parliament checks that future commissioners do not have conflicts of interest. The Legal Affairs Committee examines each candidate’s declarations of financial interests to avoid ambiguous or potentially problematic situations. This check has already been completed for the new executive, and none of the candidates presented conflicts of interest.
The hearings
Once the conflict of interest check has been passed, each candidate is summoned for a three-hour public hearing before the parliamentary commission responsible for the sector assigned to him: For example, I will be questioned by the deputies of the Regional Affairs commission (Regi). The candidate must answer detailed questions posed by the deputies, which aim to evaluate their skills and preparation. (Here is the complete calendar)
This moment is crucial: commissioners must show that they have the knowledge necessary for the role and the ability to address the most pressing issues for Europe. To prepare, candidates answer a written questionnaire in advance to demonstrate familiarity with the EU’s portfolio and priorities. Obviously in this difficult task they are helped by the officials of the General Directorate of the Commission that they will have to lead, who prepare each of them a dossier on the topics that will probably be the subject of the hearing. In practice they will prepare him for the exam.
The judgement
After the hearings, the judgment is entrusted to the conference of presidents, which brings together the president of the parliamentary commission and the leaders (in it) of the various political groups. The latter vote for or against the commissioner, with a ‘weighted’ vote, which means that each leader has a voting power proportional to the size of the group he represents, and they prepare their letters of evaluation. If the hearing is not deemed satisfactory the designated commissioners may be ‘sent back’ and may be asked to answer further written questions or to return to the Chamber for a second hearing.
In the most extreme cases, an unselected Commissioner-designate may be withdrawn by his or her Member State and replaced by a new candidate in agreement with the President of the Commission. The new candidate must also go through all the preparatory stages and a confirmation hearing in Parliament. At the end of the process, the committees’ letters of evaluation are examined by the Conference of Committee Chairs and forwarded to the Conference of Presidents, a body composed of the President and the leaders of Parliament’s political groups, which can request further information or declare the hearings closed confirmation.
The rejection
In 2019, deputies rejected three candidates: Romanian Rovana Plumb, French Sylvie Goulard and Hungarian László Trócsányi, with the governments of the three nations being forced to present another name. In 2004, for the first time in the history of the institution, it was the Italian Rocco Buttiglione, commissioner designated for Justice by the then prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, who was rejected by the European Parliament for his positions deemed too conservative on the role of women and on ‘homosexuality.
The vote of confidence
Once all the confirmation hearings have been concluded, we move on to the actual vote of confidence. The President of the Commission presents the College of Commissioners-designate and its program during a debate in the first plenary session following the hearings and at the end of the debate the European Parliament votes on the Commission as a whole. Only then can the executive take office.
The upcoming hearings: von der Leyen’s second term
For von der Leyen’s second mandate, the hearings are scheduled for 4 to 12 November 2024. They will start with Maroš Šefčovič, who has been entrusted with the Trade and Economic Security portfolio, and will end with the Executive Vice Presidents and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs.
