BARROSO ANNOUNCES NEW LINE-UP FOR

UNCLAS BRUSSELS 004739

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TAGS: PREL PGOV EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: BARROSO ANNOUNCES NEW LINE-UP FOR
COMMISSION



1. (U) EU Commission President-designate Barroso on
November 4 announced a new line-up for his
Commission. Speaking on the fringes of the Brussels
European Council, Barroso said he hoped the European
Parliament would approve his new team during its
November 15-18 plenary session after conducting
hearings next week with the changed candidates.
Barroso's new proposal includes only three changes:

- The Italian Commissioner-designate (replacing
Rocco Buttiglione) will be Foreign Minister Franco
Frattini, who will be a Vice-President of the
Commission with responsibility for Justice,
Freedom and Security;

- The Latvian Commissioner-designate (Ingrida Udre)
has been replaced by former Education and Finance
Minister Andris Piebalgs, who will take up the
Energy portfolio (replacing Hungarian Commissioner-
designate Laszlo Kovacs). Barroso noted that
Piebalgs' "scientific education" would make him
suitable for the job;

- Kovacs, will take up responsibility for Taxation
and Customs Union (originally Udre's portfolio).
While admitting that Kovacs' performance at his EP
hearing as Energy Commissioner was not deemed to
be very positive, Barroso was convinced Kovacs
would do better with Tax.


2. (U) Barroso "promised" these would be "necessary
and sufficient changes" to earn the EP's approval.
Taking questions, he defended the continued
assignment of the Competition portfolio to Dutch
Commissioner-designate Neelie Kroes, who responded
to allegations about potential conflicts of interest
"in a very transparent way." Kroes had resigned all
her corporate directorships, sold her shares,
declared all her interests and pledged not to return
to business after leaving the Commission, thus going
beyond the ethical requirements of the job. Barroso
said he would meet November 5 with the leaders of
the EP political groups to discuss practicalities
for the next stages of the confirmation procedure.
Barroso said he expected the EP to organize new
hearings quickly for the three Commissioners-
designate.


3. (U) Speaking at a separate press conference
earlier, EP President Borrell (a Spanish Socialist)
also suggested the above calendar, with hearings
next week, assuming the EP dispensed with the
traditional written questionnaire in advance of
hearings. Borrell said he could only assume that
the EP political groups will be able to show "as
much flexibility as the Council (read: the EU
governments) would have shown." Borrell
nevertheless served notice the EP "would not lower
our standards" and that requirements at the new
hearings will be the same as at the previous ones.
According to press reports, Martin Schulz, leader of
the EP's Socialist group (which was instrumental in
blocking Barroso's earlier team) has welcomed
Barroso's "enlightened and courageous step."


4. (SBU) COMMENT: For the second time, (the first
being when he attempted to earn EP approval for his
original team through only minor changes to
Buttiglione's responsibilities),Barroso is choosing
to make the minimum possible changes that could get
him through. It is not entirely clear whether this
approach is a reflection of his personal philosophy
or a function of the constraints imposed upon him by
EU governments. But Barroso was clearly given only
limited room for manoeuver by Member States. He
dropped clear hints in his press conference that
Budapest had refused to replace Kovacs, and the
Dutch had strongly resisted any shift of Kroes'
responsibilities. Based on the comments by Borrell
and Schulz, it appears almost certain that this time
Barroso's team will win EP confirmation, and be able
to take office before the end of November. END
COMMENT.

SCHNABEL