Brussels, 12/11/2014 (Agence Europe) - “I am entirely capable” of being the credible face of Europe. Put in a tricky situation on 6 November by the 'Luxleaks' scandal, the President of the European Commission and former prime minister of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Juncker, decided on Wednesday 12 November to break his silence and meet the criticism head-on.
In position for 11 days, he took pains to stress his independence by announcing initiatives in the field of taxation (see other article) and to explain his radio silence over the last few days. Under fire for cancelling a debate with the citizens to be held in Brussels in a cultural venue on the fateful 6 November, Juncker refuted the theory that he wished to avoid public disapproval. “It was certainly a mistake not to speak out, but this had nothing to do with any ill intentions”, he said. The Luxembourger cancelled his attendance of this event as the former President of the Commission, Jacques Delors, who was also to address the debate, was rushed into hospital.
In Brussels on Wednesday 12 November, Juncker also took part in the plenary session debate of the European Parliament on Luxleaks. With the GUE/NGL group at the EP having launched a petition for a vote of confidence in the Juncker Commission, the President rejected some of the criticism. “Please do not describe me as a good friend to big business, big business has better friends than I in this house”, he told the MEPs.
Juncker also declined to respond to calls for his resignation, coming both from certain political figures and certain sections of the media, although he acknowledged that he was “politically responsible” for what went on in Luxembourg for years. Earlier that morning, Juncker said that he was entirely willing to answer the questions which Margrethe Vestager, his Competition Commissioner, may have to ask him as part of her investigations into certain tax decisions taken by the Grand Duchy (Ireland and the Netherlands are also involved).
No conflict of interests, says Juncker
President Juncker also denied the existence of any conflict of interests, stating that the Competition Commissioner would be given all possible leeway to carry out her investigations. Well aware that his Commission must be the last-chance Commission, as he has stated on a number of occasions, and that it must succeed in bringing the citizens close to the European project, Jean-Claude Juncker acknowledged the potential impact of this case on the public. Pointing out that the decisions made by the Luxembourg authorities were entirely legal, he acknowledged that by creating situations of low taxation rates, these practices could contravene the “concepts of social justice”. He went on to stress that he had always “worked in favour of more tax harmonisation” and that this was an objective on which the new Commission would focus. “I said that the Commission would fight tax evasion and tax fraud. This was not just hot air, this reflects the Commission's intentions”, he concluded. (SP)