The European Commission decided on Wednesday 13 November to appoint three directors in its Directorates-General (DGs) for Economic and Financial Affairs (ECFIN) and Trade. In response to press inquiries about the appointment of former members of Commissioners' cabinets in the same areas to these positions, the Commission has rejected any parachuting.
Mr Massimo Suardi, an Italian national, becomes Director of the 'Economies of the Member States III' in DG ECFIN. Since June 2019, he has served as Vice-President Dombrovskis’ Head of Cabinet.
Germany's Reinhard Felke has been appointed Director for the ‘Economies of the Member States II' in DG ECFIN. Mr Felke has served as Deputy Head of Cabinet for Commissioner Pierre Moscovici since 2014.
Renate Nikolay, a German national, becomes Director for ‘Asia and Latin America’ in DG Trade. Ms Nikolay is currently Head of Cabinet for Commissioner Věra Jourová.
Senior Advisers. The Commission has decided to appoint a Principal Legal Adviser to its Legal Service, as well as two Principal Advisers for DG Communication and for DG ECFIN.
Mr Bernhard Schima, an Austrian national, has been appointed to the position of a Principal Legal Adviser ‘European Civil Service Law’ in the Legal Service. Mr Schima is currently an Assistant to the Director-General in the Legal Service.
Mr Telmo Baltazar, a Portuguese national, has been appointed to the position of a Principal Adviser for ‘Corporate and Political Communication’ in the DG COMM. Mr Baltazar is currently the Senior Policy Adviser in the Cabinet of President Jean-Claude Juncker.
Mr Markus Schulte, a German national, has been appointed as Principal Adviser for the 'Multiannual Financial Framework, InvestEU and the European Green Deal' in DG ECFIN. Mr Schulte is in the Cabinet of Commissioner Günther Oettinger and is currently responsible for the negotiations on the next Multiannual Financial Framework.
Mr Luc Tholoniat, a French national, becomes Principal Adviser for the 'Growth Agenda and the European Semester' at DG ECFIN. Mr Tholoniat was Assistant to the Secretary General of the European Commission, Ms Catherine Day, and Economic adviser to President Juncker.
A Commission spokesperson pointed out that the positions will be filled by people who have the necessary skills to do the job, after a fairly strict selection procedure. “Everyone has the same opportunities to apply”, the spokesperson concluded, questioned by a journalist on the fact that these appointments concern almost exclusively former members of Commissioners' cabinets within the Juncker Commission. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)