“Delivery, Destiny and Democracy" will be the three watchwords that will guide the European Commission's steps until the end of its mandate, said Margaritis Schinas, Chief Spokesperson of the Commission, at the opening of the midday press conference on Monday 7 January.
Thus, with regard to the "Delivery", the current Commission has made it a priority to complete all the proposals currently on the table before the end of its mandate. In practical terms, nearly 240 proposals have yet to be adopted, although only about 300 days remain before the end of the Commission's financial year. Mr Schinas assured that the Commission would work hard to ensure that as many of these proposals as possible would be adopted.
Mr Schinas then announced that 2019 will be the year in which Europe must take its destiny into its own hands, as Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, had called for in his last State of the Union address (see EUROPE 12094). According to the Commission's Chief Spokesperson, the European Summit, scheduled for 9 May in Sibiu, Romania, will pave the way for a stronger, more united and more democratic Europe, thus ushering in a new era.
Lastly, Mr Schinas recalled that, two weeks after the Sibiu Summit, citizens will be called upon to participate in the European elections from 23 to 26 May. An event that he described as a "chance", not only for European citizens, who can thus have their say on "the kind of European Union they want", but also for all European parties, who can use this event to put forward their ideas for the future of the Union. (Original version in French by Damien Genicot - intern)