On Wednesday 4 October, Slovak European Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, who has been appointed by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to steer the ‘European Green Deal’ (see EUROPE 13243/7), and the European Commissioner-designate for Climate Action, the Dutchman Wopke Hoekstra (see EUROPE 13243/10), received the backing of the European Parliament’s Environment Committee (ENVI), confirming them in their positions.
This approval comes after the two Commissioners responded to additional written questions following hearings that were deemed unsuccessful the previous day (see EUROPE 13263/1). Final confirmation will depend on a plenary vote scheduled for Thursday 5 October.
At the end of the coordinators’ meeting in the morning, the chairman of the ENVI Committee, Pascal Canfin (Renew Europe, French), announced the endorsement, stating: “We have obtained a majority from the EPP to the Greens, without ECR, ID and The Left”.
A political balance thus seems to have been achieved. Indeed, although the European People’s Party group, to which Mr Hoekstra belongs, and the S&D group, which supports Maroš Šefčovič, were initially opposed to the nomination of the candidate from the other political family, they finally chose to support each other. The Greens’ uncertain decision was favourable, strengthening the coalition in favour of the two candidate commissioners.
Speaking to the press, Pascal Canfin confirmed that there had been a significant improvement in the answers given by Mr Šefčovič, pointing out that, during his hearing, Mr Šefčovič had not provided adequate answers to various questions on animal welfare and pollution by microplastics. Now, in his written answers, Mr Šefčovič has specified the timetable envisaged for the presentation of legislative proposals: October for microplastics, November for forest surveillance and December for the protection of animals during transport.
He also discussed the European Union’s ambitions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, targeting a reduction of at least 90% by 2040. He also emphasised the need for proactive measures to achieve these targets, in particular the ‘Fit for 55’ package, which aims to achieve a 57% reduction by 2030.
Mr Canfin also mentioned Mr Šefčovič’s position on the EU’s energy independence from Russia, saying that the Commissioner would maintain a consistent position on this issue in all EU capitals, including Bratislava. This assurance may have provided some reassurance about possible ties between Mr Šefčovič and the SMER party, which emerged victorious from the recent Slovak elections and whose pro-Russian populist leader, Robert Fico, had supported the European Commissioner.
Wopke Hoekstra, for his part, was convincing, committing himself in writing to take action to enable the EU to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 90% by 2040.
On the subject of transparency, he has promised to disclose the list of assignments he has carried out at McKinsey, while making it clear that he has never collaborated with oil companies during his time at this consultancy firm. The former Dutch minister also spoke of the importance of the energy transition, mentioning the role of nuclear and other energy sources, while advocating the gradual elimination of subsidies for fossil fuels.
Peter Liese (EPP, German) welcomed the ENVI Committee’s decision, highlighting the complementary nature of the two candidates. He says Mr Hoekstra will bring diplomatic skills at a crucial time for the climate, while Mr Šefčovič will step up collaboration with industry. For his part, Tiemo Wölken (S&D, German) said he was satisfied with the clarifications provided by the two candidates, but stressed that he would be vigilant about their future actions, especially those of Mr Hoekstra.
The Greens/EFA group, despite having obtained significant climate commitments, remained divided. While Bas Eickhout from the Netherlands welcomed the publication of the key commitments obtained, the French environmentalists plan to vote against the nominations. Their concerns centre on Mr Hoekstra’s past at Shell and McKinsey and his perceived pro-market approach.
For the same reasons, the The Left group was also critical of Wopke Hoekstra, claiming that he “represents the fossil fuel lobby”.
The final vote on the two candidates will take place at the European Parliament plenary session on Thursday 5 October.
See the written responses from the Commissioners-designate: https://aeur.eu/f/8w6 ; https://aeur.eu/f/8w7 (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)