The new Barroso team of 25 began its five-year term of office on 22 November, three weeks later than originally planned. This ends the 5 week stand-off with the European Parliament.
On 27 October, President Barroso chose not to submit his team to a vote in the Plenary after two Commissioners were rejected by their respective Parliamentary Committees. Italian nominee Rocco Buttiglione was rejected by the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and Laszlo Kovacs, from Hungary was considered not to capabilities for the job of Energy Commissioner.
Questions were also raised about the Latvian Commissioner, Ingrida Udre, who was caught up in national investigations of funding irregularities in her political party.
Under pressure, Rocco Buttiglione and Ingrid Udre resigned and were replaced by Franco Frattini and Andris Piebalgs. Moreover, Piebalgs took over the Energy portfolio previously assigned to Mr Kovacs, whereas the latter was given the responsibility for Taxation and Customs Union, previously assigned to Mrs Udre.
Satisfied with having forced the Commission and Member States to take them seriously, MEPs immediately held a second round of hearings that resulted in the three Commissioners designates being accepted by their Committees.
The whole College of Commissioners was approved by the European Parliament on Thursday, 18 November 2004 by a large majority of 478 votes to 84, with 98 abstentions.
A new problem was averted when the European Parliament’s legal service accepted the explanation by French Commissioner, Jacques Barrot about why he did not mention during his hearing a suspended jail sentence related to a court case about party funding case. The conviction had been automatically erased by a 1995 presidential amnesty and French law states that no reference may be made to such a sentence, which carries no criminal record.
Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes has already had to step aside on 5 cases being investigated by her Directorate because of conflicts of interest with her business activities. During the Parliament hearings, several MEPs had complained that she would effectively be a part-time Commissioner because of her many posts with different companies.
All of the new Commissioners and their Cabinet officials have now moved into the restored Berlaymont building.
Cabinet of Mr Markos Kyprianou.
Press contacts for the Commissioners
