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Juncker unveils EU executive team in new-look hierarchy
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THE incoming head of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, unveiled an EU executive team yesterday that handed key economic responsibilities to French and British commissioners but overseen by others in a new-look hierarchy.
Naming Britain’s Jonathan Hill to a brief including banks and the integration of European Union capital markets was widely seen as a gesture to British Prime Minister David Cameron, a vocal critic of Juncker and his support for a powerful Brussels that Cameron says could push Britons to vote to quit the EU.
Pierre Moscovici, the nominee of French President Francois Hollande and a proponent of government spending to boost eurozone growth, will manage economic and monetary affairs.
But in a mark of the balance among the competing interests of the 28 EU member states that Juncker is obliged to respect, both the economy and finance portfolios will be overseen by two vice presidents on the commission.
Former Prime Ministers Jyrki Katainen of Finland and Valdis Dombrovskis of Latvia will be respective vice presidents with oversight of “Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness” and “The Euro and Social Dialogue.”
Both northern eurozone countries are allies of Germany and backers of austerity.
Germany, as economic powerhouse of the EU, is sure of a major say in its affairs. Berlin’s representative, the outgoing EU energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger, will be responsible for the “digital economy,” notably the telecoms industry.
The introduction of an upper layer of seven vice presidents without their own direct portfolios, including a powerful first vice president in the shape of Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans, was explained by Juncker as a way to improve the coordination of the commission’s work.
Others have long pointed out that giving each member state a seat on the executive has made it increasingly unwieldy as the EU has grown greatly.
However, some analysts questioned whether the overlap of responsibilities could also now create confusion and fuel rivalries among the various commissioners.
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