On Thursday 29 September, the Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU) formally made a complaint about the European Commission, accusing it of having taken too little action in recent 'revolving door' job cases involving former European commissioners.
The organisation is calling on the Juncker Commission to take the Barroso case to the Court of Justice of the EU for it to strip him of his pension rights. José Manuel Barroso has been the target of fierce criticism since he was appointed to a senior position with the American bank Goldman Sachs International (see EUROPE 11621).
ALTER-EU complained on the grounds of maladministration due to the Commission's inaction over the controversial appointments, after their positions at the Commission, of Neelie Kroes (Uber in May 2016 and Salesforce) and Karel De Gucht (ArcelorMittal, in May 2016).
The organisation also calls for an in-depth revision of the code of conduct of the commissioners (including a withdrawal period of three years, or even five years in the case of Commission presidents) and for Kroes to be fined following the Bahamas Leaks revelations (see EUROPE 11630). According to ALTER-EU, there are grounds to believe that Kroes' actions constitute a violation of the ethical rules for commissioners and the association believes that she should be sanctioned. The former commissioner for competition between 2004 and 2009 is believed to have held a directorship with a company in the Bahamas during her term in office, but failed to report this position in her statement of interests.
In addition, a complaint of maladministration has been made regarding the appointment of two Commission special advisers to the ad hoc Ethical Committee. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)