On Tuesday 23 July, the members of European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) elected their bureau for a two-and-a-half-year term, apart from the election of the fourth vice-chair, postponed for lack of a female candidate from the conservative ECR group.
French Socialist Aurore Lalucq was elected by acclamation Chair of the ECON Committee, which she pointed out is 80% male. She succeeds Irene Tinagli (S&D, Italian).
Promising at the session that future debates would be “tough on substance, gentle on form”, the French Socialist said that the European Parliament would be expected to address economic and industrial issues. Interviewed after the inaugural meeting by Agence Europe, she noted that the second phase of the ‘European Green Deal’ will be “purely economic”, pointing out the speed with which the United States and China are reorienting their own economies towards clean technologies.
With regard to the capital markets union (CMU), Ms Lalucq called for a serious debate on mobilising private capital for investment in the transition. Capital markets are “not a miracle solution”, she said, noting that the CMU’s further development faces difficulties when it comes to harmonising national bankruptcy laws and setting up supervisors at European level.
The ECON committee also elected Damian Boeselager (Greens/EFA, German) as its first Vice-Chair (38 votes in favour, 8 against, 4 abstentions), as the Patriots for Europe group’s attempt to have Frenchman Pierre Pimpie elected failed due to the ‘cordon sanitaire’ against the far right. Mr Boeselager indicated to Agence Europe that he wanted to focus his attention on European competition and state aid so that it further “unlocks economic potential”.
The Slovakian Ľudovít Ódor (Renew Europe) and the Czech Luděk Niedermayer (EPP) were elected second and third Vice-Chairs respectively. The conservative ECR group has asked that the election of the fourth vice-chair be postponed so that it can present a woman for this position, as its seven current members are men. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)