STRASBOURG (Reuters) – EU lawmakers are expected on Wednesday to finally approve a new executive European Commission under German conservative Ursula von der Leyen after delays and disagreements.
Von der Leyen needs a simple majority among lawmakers in the 751-member European Parliament for her team to start work on Dec. 1 dealing with a daunting array of challenges including climate change, economic reform and migration.
The new executive had been due to take office on Nov. 1 but the politically fragmented European Parliament rejected three of the nominees, forcing a delay. The executive comprises one commissioner from each EU member state, though Britain, which is due to exit the bloc, has declined to name a representative.
Failure to win Wednesday’s vote in Strasbourg would further delay the start of her five-year term and extend the current transitional vacuum in EU policy-making at a time of trade tensions with Donald Trump’s United States and an increasingly powerful China.
Von der Leyen, 61, a former German defense minister and close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, will be the first woman ever to hold the EU’s top job.
She has listed among her priorities healing EU divisions over migration, stepping up the fight against climate change, tackling gender inequality and equipping Europe better for the digital era.
Building consensus among fractious member states on the politically sensitive issue of the EU’s next long-term budget from 2021 will be another major challenge for von der Leyen and her team.
The Commission proposes laws for the EU on everything from budgets to energy, negotiates trade deals around the world on behalf of the EU’s 500 million citizens and acts as the bloc’s competition watchdog, approving company mergers and setting rules for global tech giants such as Facebook and Google.
The new executive may face legal challenges next year due to Brexit. Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to finally take Britain out of the EU on January 31 if his Conservative Party wins a parliamentary majority in a Dec. 12 election.
As Britain currently remains an EU member after several delays to its departure, it is legally required to have a commissioner in Brussels. Its refusal to name one could expose the new Commission’s decisions to legal risks.
Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Gareth Jones
- SAG-AFTRA Board Approves New Film & TV Contract
- New National Security Office in Hong Kong to Target Foreign Forces
- Majority of French approve new cabinet, but expect no change in Marcon's policy: poll
- Coronavirus: MPs approve new working arrangements as Commons returns
- US, Mexico set for new post-NAFTA trade era
- EU lawmakers agree to include shipping emissions in EU carbon market
- EU agrees to reopen borders to 14 countries, extends travel ban for US tourists
- Opposition party sets off tear gas in Kosovo Parliament
- EU investigates decision to hire BlackRock to advise on green rules for banks
- Barclays aims to dodge EU bank bonus cap with new top-up payments to staff
- Moderna's coronavirus vaccine announcement set off a frenzy on Wall Street. Now some are calling for an investigation
- EU's Vestager denies making Lufthansa bailout more difficult
- Australian lawmaker says he isn’t a suspect in China probe
- Hong Kong: US passes sanctions as nations condemn new law
- New York primary voters might await results into July
- ‘An Oral History Of The Office’ Podcast Set With Host Brian Baumgartner – Hear The Trailer
- U.S. EPA receives 52 new petitions for retroactive biofuel blending waivers
- Bloodletting on Barclays' board: Another top executive quits as spotlight falls on size of Bob Diamond payoff
- IBM plans to reduce office space by nearly half in India
- BMW Group India Appoints Mr Vikram Pawah As New President
Lawmakers set to approve new EU executive to take office on December 1 have 622 words, post on www.reuters.com at November 27, 2019. This is cached page on TechNews. If you want remove this page, please contact us.