On Wednesday 5 September, the European Commission announced that Anne Bucher will take over as head of the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE) as of 1 October.
Of French nationality, Bucher has worked for the European Commission for 35 years. During most of her career, she has held management positions. Since 2008, she has been a senior manager in the Commission’s Directorates-General for economic affairs and for communications networks, content and technology.
In March 2016, Bucher became the Chair of the Commission’s regulatory scrutiny board (RSB) (see EUROPE 11503). She ensured that the RSB provided independent advice to the College of Commissioners, thus allowing the Commission to deliver on its political priorities and its better regulation programme. One of the recent success stories of the RSB is its contribution to the delivery of over 50 legislative proposals for the sectoral programmes under the multiannual financial framework (MMF) 2021-2027.
Bucher will take over from Xavier Prats Monné who, after a long career at the Commission, will be retiring at the end of September. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)