EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday named Ireland's former finance minister Michael McGrath as the new EU Commssioner for Justice.
The commissioner for justice is responsible for leading the EU’s efforts to tackle breaches of the rule of law by member states, such as Hungary and previously Poland under its populist former government. The commissioner is also responsible for enforcing legislation such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The role is currently held by Didier Reynders, a Belgian politician.
The Government has always stated it would push for Mr McGrath to be given a finance-related commission portfolio. Ireland’s current EU commissioner, Mairead McGuinness, holds the role responsible for financial services, so the justice job will be seen as a sideways move.
Mr McGrath stepped down as minister for finance in late June after the Cabinet agreed to nominate him as Ireland’s pick for its next EU commissioner.
Among the other appointments to her new Commission, Ms von der Leyen appointed Spain's ecological transition minister Teresa Ribera as the EU's next antitrust commissioner while Estonia's Kaja Kallas will be in charge of foreign policy.
Lithuania's Andrius Kubilius will become the EU's first defence commissioner - a new role designed to build up European military manufacturing capacity in the face of Russian aggression in Europe's eastern flank.
Other names on the list of EU Commissioners include French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne in charge of industrial strategy, while Slovakia's Maros Sefcovic will oversee trade policies.
The Commission is the European Union's most powerful institution. It has the power to propose new EU laws, block mergers between companies and sign free trade deals.
Each EU member state will have one seat at the Commission's table, a role comparable to a government minister, although its political weight varies greatly depending on the portfolio.
All candidates will undergo hearings with lawmakers in the European Parliament who have to sign off on their nomination.
Ribera will need to fill the footsteps of Denmark's long-serving antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, who in recent years stepped up the pressure on Big Tech to allow fair competition on its platforms.
She will also oversee the EU's stance on foreign subsidies, another hot-button issue as companies in key sectors like electric vehicles and energy production are struggling to defend their business models against cheap competition from abroad, particularly from China.
All commissioners will report to German conservative von der Leyen, who this summer was handed a second term as EU chief executive by member states after her political camp won the most votes in EU elections.
The next EU Commission is expected to take office by the end of the year, meaning one of its first tasks will be fielding the outcome of the U.S. presidential election in November.
A second Trump presidency could sharply alter Western unity on supporting Ukraine against Russia's invasion and up-end EU trade relations with the world's biggest economy.
There was some drama on Monday on the next Commission's line-up, when France picked Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne as its new candidate after the incumbent, Thierry Breton, abruptly quit with tough words for von der Leyen. - Reuters
