On Thursday 19 September, the European Parliament sent its written questions to the Commissioners-designate of the next Commission. A number of points have been raised by MEPs, but one subject is conspicuous by its absence: the issue of some Commissioners' suspected conflicts of interest.
This involves several Commissioners-designate, starting with Sylvie Goulard, who is proposed for the Internal Market portfolio. The Liberal candidate had resigned from her post as Minister of the Armed Forces in 2017 due to suspicions about fake jobs in the European Parliament. Primarily, the French MEP was paid by an American think tank, the Berggruen Institute, for several years, when she was an MEP (see EUROPE 12315/1).
The Belgian liberal Didier Reynders, who has been awarded the Justice portfolio, is suspected of having participated in a corruption and money laundering network in order to win public contracts (in particular the construction of the Belgian embassy in Kinshasa). The Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office recently opened a preliminary investigation.
Social Democrat Rovana Plumb, likely to become Transport Commissioner, is also suspected of having compromised herself in corruption cases in Romania.
Hungarian László Trócsányi, Commissioner-designate for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, is suspected of having favoured his own law firm in the outsourcing of several public cases.
The absence of the subject of conflicts of interest in Members' questions may therefore be surprising. The reason could be simple, however. The questions were drawn up by the various political groups within the framework of the relevant parliamentary committees and were to be agreed by consensus. As these candidates belong to the three main political groups, addressing this subject was far too politically sensitive. However, it is likely that the Commissioners will have to answer on these suspicions during their hearings at the European Parliament at the end of the month (see EUROPE 12331/2).
"European way of life"
However, MEPs have not avoided some of the topics that have been in the news in recent weeks. For example, Margaritis Schinas is asked about her vision of what the "European way of life" is, referring to her portfolio of the same name. László Trócsányi is, for his part, put on the spot about his particularly controversial work as Minister of Justice, a mandate during which he passed several laws (including the so-called "anti-Soros" law) that have been in the headlines in recent months.
The Commissioners have until next Thursday, we are told, to answer the many questions, which altogether constitute a document of nearly 60 pages.
To consult the questions: http://bit.ly/2mrIKst (Pascal Hansens)