Brussels, 20/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - Meeting in Brussels before the summit on Thursday 19 December, the leaders of the European People's Party agreed on the timetable for appointing their candidate for the top job at the European Commission - as provided for by the new procedure in the Lisbon Treaty.
The EPP will therefore open applications at a summit on 13 February and in order to be nominated the applicant will have to have the support of his own national party, as well as that of two other national parties. The deadline for submitting applications will be 5 March, and the party's political assembly will examine the applications during the congress on 6 March. Once the applications have been approved, the political assembly will put them to the vote of the congress on 7 March. When its candidate has been identified, the EPP will then launch its campaign. This timetable will make the EPP the last to get its runner in the race.
During Thursday's EPP summit, the name of the former prime minister of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Juncker, also appeared in the running, with French daily Le Monde saying that he wanted to run both for the presidency of the Commission and for the presidency of the Council. Other names that have been put forward this week are those of Commissioners Michel Barnier, Viviane Reding and Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny.
On arriving in Brussels on Thursday, Kenny stated, however, that although “flattered” he had not put his name forward either for the Commission or for the presidency of the Council. Instead, he said, he was reckoning on focusing on the success of his party, Fine Gael, in the next general elections in 2016. (SP/transl.fl)