On Thursday 5 September, the President-elect of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, announced that she would present, on Tuesday 10 September, the 27 members of the future College of European Commissioners.
I am looking forward to assembling a "well-balanced" College that I will present "on Tuesday", said Mrs von der Leyen via Twitter, after having received official confirmation from the Italian authorities of Paolo Gentiloni's appointment as European Commissioner.
One of the most significant promises of the first woman to preside over the European institution is to set up for the first time a team composed of as many women as men. This bet seems on the way to being met, looking at the persons appointed by their Member States (see EUROPE 12313/12).
Another known element of the future College: the Danish Margrethe Vestager and the Dutch Frans Timmermans will be vice-presidents with strengthened powers.
Once the distribution of all portfolios is known, the Commissioners-designate will be heard by the relevant European Parliament parliamentary committee at the end of September or beginning of October. The objective of the 'von der Leyen' team is to obtain a stronger majority from the European Parliament than the one that led to the election, at the end of July, of Mrs von der Leyen (see EUROPE 12297/1).
Boris Johnson's British government has not appointed a person to sit on the 'von der Leyen' Commission, convinced that Brexit will take place on 31 October, the day before the future Commission takes office. However, as the British political class continues be divided over the modalities for how the United Kingdom will leave the European Union (see other news), there could be a problem if the negotiating deadline is extended beyond 31 October.
Since the Treaties require the presence of one Commissioner per Member State, will the 'von der Leyen' Commission be able to take office if the United Kingdom remains a Member State after 1 November?
Yes, according to Eric Maurice of the Robert Schuman Foundation, for whom a commissioner position could remain vacant if the period leading to Brexit remains short. This is currently the case with the Juncker Commission where the Romanian replacement for Ms Cretu and the Estonian one for Mr Ansip have not officially taken up their duties. In mid-October, the European Council could also make the appointment of a Commissioner by London a condition for an extension of the Brexit deadline, Mr Mauritius said. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)