Next, the Europa Today newsletter that every Sunday morning tells you what will happen in the coming European week, edited by Alfonso Bianchi (for comments, suggestions or criticisms write to [email protected]).
The “von der Leyen II” officially begins: on Wednesday 4 December at Palazzo Berlaymont the German leader, in her second mandate, will preside over the first college with the new 26 commissioners, fresh from the vote of confidence (to be honest, very narrow) by the deputies of Strasbourg. As announced by the president during the European Chamber plenary, the first major initiative of the new Commission will be the “competitiveness compass”, i.e. the strategy to relaunch European industry which should be imbued with the indications given by Mario Draghi in his report.
Ursula’s (and Mario’s) compass – The compass will have three pillars, explained von der Leyen: the first is to bridge the innovation gap with the United States and China. The second is a joint plan for decarbonisation and competitiveness. The third is to increase security and reduce dependencies on third countries. In the first hundred days of the new mandate, the president promised that seven initiatives will be implemented: a Clean Industrial Deal, a White Paper on European defense, an initiative on artificial intelligence factories, an action plan for cybersecurity of health infrastructure, a vision for agriculture and food, enlargement policy reviews and dialogues on youth policy which will be organized by each Commissioner to give a greater voice to the next generation of Europeans.
The new entry – Before meeting his commissioners, von der Leyen will see the other two EU presidents, Roberta Metsola (Parliament) and Antonio Costa (Council) on Monday 1 December. Of the trio, the novelty is represented by Costa: the former Portuguese prime minister has been called to lead what is in fact the most powerful institution in Brussels, the assembly that brings together the 27 heads of state and government. And his task, like that of his predecessors, will not be easy. The socialist will have the complicated task of being able to bring together the quarrelsome leaders of the bloc, whose interests and worldviews are often in conflict. And he knows this well, having been part of the Council for eight years as prime minister of his country in three consecutive governments.
Costa is the first person belonging to an ethnic minority to head an EU institution. His paternal grandfather was originally from Goa, an Indian state that ceased to be part of the Portuguese empire a few months after the birth of the president, while his paternal grandmother was French-Mozambican. Here is everything you need to know about the new President of the European Council.
Top of the agenda
Romanians (again) at the polls – After the first round of the presidential elections, won surprisingly by the right-wing extremist Calin Georgescu, Romania will return to voting on Sunday 1st December for the legislative elections which will assign 133 seats in the Senate and 330 in the Chamber of Deputies. The threshold is set at 5 percent and parliamentarians will be elected in 43 multi-member constituencies through a system of proportional representation on party lists.
The accusations of fraud – The parliamentary elections, sandwiched between the first and second rounds of the presidential elections scheduled for December 8, are being held in a somewhat turbulent and uncertain political context with Georgescu’s victory tainted by the suspicion of foreign interference through TikTok, and by decision of the Constitutional Court to proceed with a recount of the votes after a request for annulment due to fraud.
The NATO umbrella over Kiev – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has speculated that a ceasefire agreement with Russia could be reached if Kiev-controlled territory was placed “under the NATO umbrella.” On Tuesday 3rd and Wednesday 4th the possibility and the war in Ukraine in general will be discussed at the ministerial meeting of the Atlantic Alliance in Brussels.
EU Parliament
Lagarde hearing – Wednesday 4 Christine Lagarde will be at a hearing in the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, first as president of the European Central Bank and then as president of the European Systemic Risk Board. With the deputies he will discuss economic governance, geopolitical risks and the rising cost of living.
TikTok and elections – Representatives of TikTok will be at a hearing in the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee on Tuesday 3rd to discuss the social media’s compliance with the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) in the context of recent elections in Europe. The Chinese company is accused of favoring, for example, the radical right-wing candidate Călin Georgescu in Romania.
The new European mediator – Also on Tuesday, the six candidates for the position of European Ombudsman will present their priorities in a hearing organized by the Petitions Committee. Parliament is expected to elect Emily O’Reilly’s successor as Ombudsman by secret ballot during its December plenary session in Strasbourg.
Fight against organized crime – Members of the Committee on Civil Liberties and Justice will hold their first debate with the newly elected President of Eurojust Michael Schmid on Monday 2 December. MEPs will discuss the agency’s work in the fight against organized crime and drug trafficking, as well as investigations into crimes in Ukraine.
EU defense – The new Defense Commissioner, Andrius Kubilius, will review European security priorities with the Plenary’s Subcommittee on Security and Defense, while the new High Representative, Kaja Kallas, will meet the Committee on Budgetary Control to discuss the expenditure of the European External Action Service.
Polish presidency – The Conference of Presidents of Parliament (the President of the Chamber Metsola and the leaders of the political groups) will be in Warsaw on Thursday 5th to meet the Polish government and the members of the political groups of the Sejm to prepare the next Polish presidency of the Council of the EU, which it will last from January to June 2025. Metsola will also have a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Disability rights – From Monday to Friday, Parliament will hold its second Disability Rights Week. Members from all committees will discuss and participate in events on existing and future policies that enable people with disabilities to live on equality and realize their full potential.
EU Council
Fairer internships – Monday 2 December meeting of the EU Employment Council with the ministers of the twenty-seven who, among other things, will try to agree on a position on the directive on traineeships, which aims to improve the working conditions of trainees and to fight against regular employment relationships disguised as internships.
But not necessarily paid – Parliament had asked to include a remuneration obligation but the new rules presented by the Commission are limited to promoting “quality” internships and recommending “fair remuneration for interns”. The Community Assembly was the first EU institution to ban unpaid internships within it, including those of parliamentary assistants.
Smoke-free Europe – Tuesday 3rd Health Council meeting, with ministers expected to agree their position on the Commission’s recommendation to impose smoking bans in outdoor bars and restaurants, at bus stops and in places frequented by children such as parks and zoos. The question of whether or not to include electronic cigarettes and those with heated tobacco is under discussion.
Withdrawal of the driving licence – On Thursday 5th at the Transport Council, ministers will try to agree on their position on the directive on driving license withdrawal decisions, on the regulation on passenger rights in the context of multimodal travel and on the application of passenger rights in the EU.
Cybersecurity – On Friday 6 December at the EU Telecommunications Council, the ministers of the Twenty-seven will approve conclusions on the EU Agency for Cybersecurity (Enisa) and on the Commission’s white paper entitled “How to adequately address Europe’s needs in terms of digital infrastructure? “.
