There are two ways the remaining commissioners could pass. Either — as has been the case for most of the commissioners so far — the groups will need to secure a two-thirds majority in each of the committees that grilled the commissioners from Nov. 4-12. Or — if talks on a package deal go nowhere … Read more
“The EPP Group prides itself in extending its full cooperation” to legal authorities, a spokesperson for Weber and the EPP groups said in a statement to POLITICO said, adding that no external auditors “currently have any open cases of alleged misuse of funds.” Layered inquiry EPPO is in charge of investigating serious crimes affecting the … Read more
Bernd Lange, the German MEP who heads the Conference of Committee Chairs (CCC), “will summarize” Tuesday’s discussion “and bring both proposals to CoP, highlighting a clear majority in CCC for November,” said two parliamentary officials with knowledge of the process, granted anonymity to speak freely. The only faction pushing for a mid-October start date is … Read more
“It would have been a great honor to serve as Lithuania’s European commissioner, but I will continue to serve my country, help Ukraine and fight for Europe’s future in other ways,” Landsbergis said on X. He has asked Šimonytė to propose another candidate for the president to consider. Landsbergis shot to international fame in the … Read more
Senior EPP figures, such as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and party chief Manfred Weber, have made the acceptance of any new MEPs into the EPP conditional on their support for Ukraine. Weber negotiated directly with Magyar in Hungary last week. “I think the EPP understood the special, sensitive Hungarian situation in that war. … Read more
Squaring these two seemingly irreconcilable positions will be “the biggest challenge,” Eickhout said. Celebrate today, negotiate tomorrow In the moment, at least, it was a triumphant, delirious Sunday night for von der Leyen, who led her party to an increased share of seats in the Parliament. Now, however, she must begin tense negotiations to secure … Read more
Von der Leyen has been assiduously courting Italian Prime Minister Meloni | Andreas Solaro/AFP via Getty Images If von der Leyen abandons hope of receiving support from the ECR, she would need backing not just from Renew and S&D, but also the Greens, to make up for the shortfall. With the Greens in the mix, … Read more
Since the 2019 election this European Parliament has had to deal with various challenges, from Brexit and Covid-19 to the war in Ukraine and scandals such as Qatargate. At the same time it has managed to legislate on key issues such as climate change, AI and migration. In this episode we look back at the … Read more
Bellamy, however, said his Les Républicains (LR) party, which is affiliated with the EPP, won’t support her. “[Von der Leyen] was not our candidate in 2019 but Emmanuel Macron’s,” Bellamy said during an interview with radio station France Inter on Tuesday. “LR won’t support her because her record falls short of Europe’s expectations.” Von der … Read more
In 2024, the right wing surge in the polls seems bigger and bolder, with one predicting the nationalist right and far right could pick up nearly a quarter of seats in the European Parliament in June. Even if the center-right — currently tipped to come first in the election — refuses to form a governing … Read more
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