Von der Leyen Commission

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Von der Leyen Commission
Other Executive Vice Presidents:
  • Margrethe Vestager (ALDE, DEN)
  • Valdis Dombrovskis (EPP, LAT
  • )
    No. of commissioners27
    Member parties
    •   EPP (11)
    •   PES (8)
    •   ALDE Party (5)
    •   Independent (1)
    •   ECR Party (1)
    •   EGP (1)
    Status in legislature
    History
    Election(s)2019 European Parliament election
    Legislature term(s)Ninth
    Budget(s)€165.8 billion (2019)
    PredecessorJuncker Commission

    The von der Leyen Commission is the current

    member states of the European Union (other than the President's state, Germany
    ).

    The commission was scheduled to take office on 1 November 2019; however, the French, Hungarian and Romanian commissioner-candidates lost their confirmation votes by the European Parliament in early October 2019,[1] so new commissioners had to be selected from those three member states by the President-elect and subsequently confirmed by the Parliament. This process took place in November 2019 and the Commission eventually took office in its entirety on 1 December 2019.[2]

    Election and formation

    Von der Leyen, a member of the European People's Party (EPP), was selected and proposed to the European Parliament by the European Council on 3 July 2019 following three days of negotiations between leaders of the member states. Von der Leyen faced many critics, especially among MEPs, since the European Council ignored the so-called spitzenkandidat system when choosing her for the position.

    On 16 July 2019, the European Parliament took a vote on the proposal by the European Council and elected Von der Leyen with 383 votes (374 votes needed). Before the vote, Von der Leyen had received the support of three largest political groups in the Parliament (EPP, S&D and RE); during the debate the conservative Polish party Law and Justice with 24 MEPs and the Italian Five Stars Movement (M5S) with 14 MEPs declared their support. Based on the result of the vote, nearly 100 MEPs of the unofficial grand coalition EPP-S&D-RE did not vote for Von der Leyen. Based on the debate and public announcements of the MEPs, most of the MEPs voting against von der Leyen probably came from the S&D group, part of which is also German Social Democratic Party, which publicly opposed Von der Leyen because of her work as German Defence Minister.[3]

    Following her election, President of the European Council Donald Tusk asked von der Leyen to give her consent on appointing Josep Borrell of Spain as the next EU High Representative. Consent was given on 26 July 2019, following which the European Council officially appointed Borrell as the next High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on 5 August 2019.[4][5][6]

    The commission was approved by the European Parliament on 27 November 2019, receiving 461 votes, with 157 against and 89 abstentions. EPP, S&D, Renew Europe and half of the ECR voted in favour. The Greens/EFA abstained.[7]

    Coalition Commission Votes cast Majority In favour Against Abstain Source
    EPP Von der Leyen Commission 707 374 461 157 89 [8]
    S&D
    RE

    College of Commissioners

    Even before Von der Leyen's confirmation, she pledged to renominate Frans Timmermans, the spitzenkandidat of the Party of European Socialists as the First Vice President. Margrethe Vestager, one of the leading candidates of the Alliance of Liberal and Democrats for Europe Party (ALDE), was said by Von der Leyen will become vice president as well, having de facto equal position to that of Timmermans. Other names have been mentioned by various news outlets as candidates. Some of the member states have already submitted the official nominations to the President-in-office of the Council of the EU.

    Von der Leyen requested that member states each propose two candidates, a man and a woman, so it would be easier to form a gender-balanced commission. France's Thierry Breton was the last candidate to be designated on 24 October 2019 by Emmanuel Macron.

    Von der Leyen Commission
    Confirmation by the European Parliament on 27 November 2019Appointment by the European Council on 28 November 2019
    Portfolio Designee Portfolio Designee Portfolio Designee
    President
    Ursula von der Leyen
    of Germany Germany

    (EPPCDU)

    First Vice President and Executive Vice President

    European Green Deal
    Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight

    Maroš Šefčovič
    of Slovakia Slovakia

    (PESSMER-SD)

    Executive Vice President and European Commissioner

    Competition

    Margrethe Vestager
    of Denmark Denmark

    (ALDEB)

    [9][10] [9][10] [9][11][12][10]
    Executive Vice President and European Commissioner

    Trade

    Valdis Dombrovskis
    of Latvia Latvia

    (EPPV)

    Vice President and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
    Josep Borrell
    of Spain Spain

    (PESPSOE)

    Vice President and European Commissioner

    Promoting the European Way of Life

    Margaritis Schinas
    of Greece Greece

    (EPPND)

    [9][13][10] [9][4][5][6][10] [9][14][10]
    Vice President and European Commissioner

    Values and Transparency

    Věra Jourová
    of Czech Republic Czech Republic

    (ALDEANO)

    Vice President and European Commissioner

    Democracy and Demography

    Dubravka Šuica
    of Croatia Croatia

    (EPPHDZ)

    European Commissioner

    Climate Action

    Wopke Hoekstra
    of the Netherlands Netherlands

    (EPPCDA)

    [15][10] [16][10] [10]
    European Commissioner

    Budget

    Johannes Hahn
    of Austria Austria

    (EPPÖVP)

    European Commissioner

    Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth

    Iliana Ivanova
    of Bulgaria Bulgaria

    (EPPGERB)

    European Commissioner

    Jobs and Social Rights

    Nicolas Schmit
    of Luxembourg Luxembourg

    (PESLSAP)

    [17][18][10] [9][19][10] [9][10]
    European Commissioner

    Economy

    Paolo Gentiloni
    of Italy Italy

    (PESPD)

    European Commissioner


    Agriculture

    Janusz Wojciechowski
    of Poland Poland

    (ECRPiS)

    European Commissioner

    Internal Market

    Thierry Breton
    of France France

    (NoneInd.)

    [20][10] [21][10] [22][10]
    European Commissioner

    Cohesion and Reforms

    Elisa Ferreira
    of Portugal Portugal

    (PESPS)

    European Commissioner

    Health and Food Safety

    Stella Kyriakides
    of Cyprus Cyprus

    (EPPDISY)

    European Commissioner


    Justice

    Didier Reynders
    of Belgium Belgium

    (

    MR
    )

    [23][24][10] [9][25][10] [26][10]
    European Commissioner


    Equality

    Helena Dalli
    of Malta Malta

    (PESPL)

    European Commissioner

    Home Affairs

    Ylva Johansson
    of Sweden Sweden

    (PESS)

    European Commissioner

    Crisis Management

    Janez Lenarčič
    of Slovenia Slovenia

    (ALDEInd.)

    [27][10] [28][10] [29][30][10]
    European Commissioner

    Transport

    Adina Vălean
    of Romania Romania

    (EPPPNL)

    European Commissioner

    Neighbourhood and Enlargement

    Olivér Várhelyi
    of Hungary Hungary

    (EPPInd.)

    European Commissioner

    International Partnerships

    Jutta Urpilainen
    of Finland Finland

    (PESSDP)

    [31][10] [9][10] [32][33][10]
    European Commissioner

    Energy

    Kadri Simson
    of Estonia Estonia

    (ALDEEK)

    European Commissioner


    Environment, Oceans and Fisheries

    Virginijus Sinkevičius
    of Lithuania Lithuania

    (EGPLVŽS)

    European Commissioner

    Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union

    Mairead McGuinness
    of Republic of Ireland Ireland

    (EPPFG)

    [34][35][10] [36][10] [37]

    Changes

    • 26 August 2020: Following Golfgate and a controversy about his travels in Ireland in preceding weeks, which conflicted with the Irish COVID-19 guidelines, Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan resigned.[38]
    • 12 October 2020: Mairead McGuinness, Ireland's nominee to replace Phil Hogan is confirmed by the European Parliament and appointed as a European Commissioner by the Council of the European Union.[39]
    • 15 May 2023: Mariya Gabriel resigns as Commissioner after being tasked with forming the next Bulgarian government.[40]
    • 22 August 2023 Frans Timmermans resigns as Executive Vice President for the European Green deal following his selection as a candidate for Prime Minister of the Netherlands in the 2023 Dutch general election.[41]
    • 19 September 2023: Iliana Ivanova, Bulgaria's nominee to replace Mariya Gabriel is confirmed by the European Parliament and appointed as a European Commissioner by the Council of the European Union.[42]
    • 9 October 2023: Wopke Hoekstra, Netherlands's nominee to replace Frans Timmermans is confirmed by the European Parliament and appointed as a European Commissioner by the Council of the European Union.[43]

    Commission departments

    Result of the election of the commission, in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, 27 November 2019

    Directorates-General

    Directorates-General of the Von der Leyen Commission
    Directorate-Generals Relevant Commissioner
    Name Abbr.
    Agriculture and Rural Development AGRI Janusz Wojciechowski
    Budget
    BUDG Johannes Hahn
    Climate Action
    CLIMA Wopke Hoekstra
    Communications Networks, Content and Technology
    CONNECT Thierry Breton
    Communication
    COMM Ursula von der Leyen
    Competition
    COMP Margrethe Vestager
    Defence Industry and Space DEFIS Thierry Breton
    Economic and Financial Affairs
    ECFIN Paolo Gentiloni
    Education, Youth, Sport and Culture
    EAC Iliana Ivanova
    Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
    EMPL Nicolas Schmit
    Energy
    ENER Kadri Simson
    Environment ENV Virginijus Sinkevičius
    European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations
    ECHO Janez Lenarčič
    Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations NEAR Olivér Várhelyi
    Eurostat - European statistics EUROSTAT Paolo Gentiloni
    Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union FISMA Mairead McGuinness
    Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority HERA Stella Kyriakides
    Health and Food Safety SANTE Stella Kyriakides
    Human Resources and Security HR Johannes Hahn
    Informatics
    DIGIT Johannes Hahn
    Internal Audit Service IAS Didier Reynders
    Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs
    GROW Thierry Breton
    International Partnerships INTPA Jutta Urpilainen
    Interpretation
    SCIC Johannes Hahn
    Joint Research Centre JRC Iliana Ivanova
    Justice and Consumers JUST Didier Reynders & Helena Dalli
    Maritime Affairs and Fisheries MARE Virginijus Sinkevičius
    Migration and Home Affairs HOME Ylva Johansson
    Mobility and Transport
    MOVE
    Adina Vălean
    Regional and Urban Policy REGIO Elisa Ferreira
    Structural Reform Support REFORM Elisa Ferreira
    Research and Innovation
    RTD Iliana Ivanova
    Taxation and Customs Union
    TAXUD Paolo Gentiloni
    Trade
    TRADE Valdis Dombrovskis
    Translation
    DGT Johannes Hahn

    Executive agencies and service departments

    Executive agencies

    Executive agencies of the Von der Leyen Commission
    Executive Agency Head
    Name Abbr.
    Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency
    EACEA Sophie Beernaerts (acting)
    European Research Council Executive Agency ERCEA Laurence Moreau
    European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency EISMEA Jean-David Malo
    Research Executive Agency
    REA Marc Tachelet
    Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency
    CINEA Paloma Aba Garrote (acting)
    Health and Digital Executive Agency HADEA Marina Zanchi

    Service departments

    Service departments of the Von der Leyen Commission
    Service department Head
    Name Abbr.
    Administration and Payment of Individual Entitlements PMO
    Data Protection Officer
    DPO
    European Anti-Fraud Office OLAF
    European Personnel Selection Office EPSO
    European Political Strategy Centre
    EPSC
    Foreign Policy Instruments FPI
    Historical Archives Service
    Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels
    OIB
    Infrastructure and Logistics in Luxembourg OIL
    Innovation and Networks Executive Agency INEA
    Internal Audit Service IAS
    Legal Service SJ
    Library and e-Resources Centre
    Publications Office OP
    Secretariat-General SG
    Structural Reform Support Service SRSS
    Taskforce on Article 50 negotiations with the United Kingdom

    Selection of the candidate for president

    Following the example of the 2014 European Election, in advance of the 2019 elections the main European political parties named so-called spitzenkandidaten, or leading candidates, who were the parties' candidates to become the next president of the European Commission. All of the parties named at least one candidate; some named two, while the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party (ALDE), which officially opposed the system of spitzenkandidaten, introduced "Team Europe," which consisted of several high-ranking European politicians. However, other parties perceived those candidates, especially Margrethe Vestager of Denmark, as leading candidates.

    The leading candidates were:

    Party Leading candidates
    European People's Party Germany Manfred Weber
    Party of European Socialists Netherlands Frans Timmermans
    Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party Germany Nicola Beer
    Italy Emma Bonino
    Slovenia Violeta Bulc
    Hungary Katalin Cseh
    Spain Luis Garicano
    Belgium Guy Verhofstadt
    Denmark Margrethe Vestager
    Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe
    Czech Republic Jan Zahradil
    European Green Party Netherlands Bas Eickhout
    Germany Ska Keller
    Party of the European Left Slovenia Violeta Tomić
    Belgium Nico Cué

    After winning 2019 European election, the European People's Party claimed that the position of the President of the European Commission should be given to them and wanted their leading candidate Manfred Weber for the job. However, Weber faced strong opposition from the liberal-leaning French President Emmanuel Macron and the ALDE, and from the Party of European Socialists (PES) as well; opposition was driven by Weber's lack of experience, since he had only previously served as MEP and never held any governmental position.[44] The PES strongly supported the candidature of Frans Timmermans, who also had support from most of the ALDE members of the European Council. (Andrej Babiš, then Czech Prime Minister, is a member of the ALDE but also of the Visegrad Four, which strongly opposed Timmermans because of his support for migration quotas and inability to reach compromises.[45]) The ALDE Party wanted to see Margrethe Vestager taking the top Commission job.

    The first European Council meeting was held on 20 and 21 June 2019, bringing no decision on distribution of EU top jobs. President Donald Tusk summoned leaders again for a special meeting that lasted from 30 June until 2 July 2019. Over three days of negotiations, the EPP gave up on Weber becoming the President of the commission; it seemed that Timmermans might be nominated, especially after he met with Bulgarian Prime Minister and EPP member Boyko Borisov at the Bulgarian Embassy in Belgium during the meeting of the European Council. Naming Timmermans President of the European Commission would have been a part of the so-called Osaka deal, a plan that was formed by several EU leaders (Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, Giuseppe Conte, Donald Tusk, Mark Rutte, and Pedro Sánchez) during the 2019 G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan.

    However, the opposition from Visegrad Four, now joined by Croatia and Italy, was still strong, and Timmermans could not win a Council majority. Other names mentioned during the negotiations included Michel Barnier, Kristalina Georgieva and Andrej Plenković; it became clear after the Council ended that Plenković's name had been introduced by Commission Secretary-General Martin Selmayr, who is Plenković's close friend. The candidature was rejected by Macron, who opposed the personal ambitions of leaders.[46]

    When Ursula von der Leyen (EPP)'s name emerged as a potential candidate, it was a surprise and she faced many critics, mainly because she had not been a spitzenkandidat. The German Social Democratic Party, part of the German government coalition, opposed von der Leyen due to her work as minister of defence, which resulted in the German Chancellor Angela Merkel's abstention during the council's vote on the proposal. Nevertheless, all other European Council members voted in favor, and she was nominated as the next President of the European Commission.

    Brexit vacancy

    With the three month Brexit delay requested, the United Kingdom had not nominated any British commissioner. This was a unique event with no precedent in the history of the European Union. Von der Leyen had to formally request the British Government nominate an EU commissioner. She also asked the legal service if the commission could operate without a British commissioner. Some MEPs have suggested the possibility of a vote to allow the EU Commission to operate without a British commissioner.[47]

    The United Kingdom left the European Union at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020, so the position of British commissioner remained vacant until its automatic abolition when Brexit occurred.

    Policy

    Geopolitical Commission

    Von der Leyen, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Joe Biden at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow on 1 November 2021

    From the outset of her mandate as President of the European Commission, von der Leyen stated her intention to have a “geopolitical commission.”[48] The French President Emmanuel Macron is the most important driving force behind the ambition of a geopolitical commission. His vision is that the EU must become a political and strategic player with one voice.[49] Critics have pointed out that by flying the geopolitical flag, Commission President von der Leyen has exposed the weaknesses of the EU as a whole in playing a decisive role at the high diplomatic table.[50]

    COVID-19

    In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU passed the Next Generation EU package, worth 750 billion euros. Von der Leyen's Commission proposed the package on 27 May 2020.[51]

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