Brussels, 30/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - The Social Democrat Karmenu Vella, Commissioner designate for the Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, is expected to be confirmed in his post within the Juncker Commission, if Jean-Claude Juncker agrees to make a few changes to the mission letter of the future Commission. The coordinators of the committees which carried out his hearing on Monday 29 September gave their conditional agreement on the same evening, without any need to carry out a vote. The condition has nothing to do with Vella's performance in his hearing (see EUROPE 11165), but relates to the structure of the future Commission itself, which will call for a response from Juncker himself, a parliamentary source announced on Thursday.
Following Vella's hearing by the MEPs of the environment and fisheries committees, the coordinators decided to give their approval, subject to changes to the portfolio of vice-president designate Katainen, who will be in charge of employment, growth, investment and competitiveness, as the MEPs wish to add a responsibility for environmental sustainability. Martin Schulz had already put a similar request to Juncker before the hearings of the commissioners-designate began. This conditional agreement led to long discussions, as the EPP and S&D were against any conditions being placed and the ALDE was not steadfastly in favour of them, unlike the Greens/EFA Group.
NGOs call for Vella's candidacy to be rejected. Immediately after the hearing, Birdlife Europe and the European Environment Bureau (EEB) called for Vella's candidacy to be rejected, describing his responses as “vague, evasive and often inaccurate”. Greenpeace acknowledged that it was unconvinced that Vella was the right person for the job, due, amongst other things, to a “lack of comprehension of the complexity of the environmental dossiers”. (AN)