Brussels, 11/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 12 January 2011, the European Commission will finalise the shortlists of candidates to chair the three new European Supervisory Authorities (one for banking, one for insurance and occupational pensions and one for the financial markets) that were set up earlier this month (see EUROPE 10285). According to our sources, there are no more than three names on any shortlist, or even a single name, from the pool of more than 300 applicants. The Commission will submit the shortlists to the three ESAs, which will select one of the individuals from each list, who will then attend a public hearing at the European Parliament.
The Commission shortlist for the European Securities' Market Authority (ESMA) is reported to have two names - Belgium's Jean-Paul Servais, current head of the “Commission Bancaire, Financière et des Assurances” (CBFA), and the Netherlands' Steven Maijoor, current head of the “Autoriteit Financiële Markten”. The Commission is reported to have a single name on the shortlist for the ESA for banking, namely Italy's Andrea Enria, currently director at Italy's central bank, whose name was leaked in the Italian media last week. Another candidate, a British national, is reported to have withdrawn from the list due to the scant hope of success. There are reported to be three names on the shortlist for the ESA for insurance and occupational pensions, a Portuguese national, an Italian national and a Belgian national. There are no French, German or British candidates on the shortlists.
Quizzed at a meeting on Monday with MEPs on the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, in response to a comment by Philippe Lamberts (Greens/EFA, Belgium) who expressed surprise at the paucity of names on the shortlists, Belgium's finance minister, Didier Reynders, agreed, saying that he himself was rather surprised at the lack of names although he said that when there are a few names with a lot of weight, many other people are reluctant to apply. He hoped it would be possible to appoint genuinely strong personalities to chair the new ESAs, echoing a plea from Jean-Paul Gauzès (EPP, France) for the new ESA leaders to be recognised figures with unchallenged authority. (M.B. trans fl)