Brussels, 16/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - When the European Commission is renewed in 2014, hearings of the new commissioners are expected to be simplified and assessment of candidates speeded up, the European Parliament (EP) constitutional affairs committee states in a report adopted on 15 June. Although the last hearings had allowed transparent, fair and coherent assessment of the commissioners-designate, certain changes are nonetheless necessary and desirable if approval procedure is to be improved, the EP rapporteur on this issue, Andrew Duff (ALDE, UK), said. One of the main changes put forward by the MEPs is that of allowing the EP president to invite the Commission's present-elect to report on the composition of the prospective college and the distribution of portfolios to a joint meeting of the Conference of Presidents. In parallel, the declarations of interest of the commissioners-designate shall be sent for scrutiny to the committee responsible for legal affairs. MEPs also hope that each hearing will last three hours and that the oral statement introducing each commissioner-designate be reduced to 10 minutes. Questions should be grouped by theme in order to avoid repetition. Furthermore, MEPs would like hearings to be transmitted by audiovisual means live and that a recording of the hearings be made available to the public within 24 hours. Duff's report should be put to the vote during the July plenary session in Strasbourg. If it is adopted, changes will be entered in the Parliament's rules of procedure. (H.B./transl.jl)