Ninth European Parliament
This article needs to be updated.(July 2024) |
9th European Parliament | |
---|---|
2 July 2019 – 15 July 2024 | |
President (1st Half) | David Sassoli (S&D) Roberta Metsola (EPP) (acting) |
President (2nd Half) | Roberta Metsola (EPP) |
Vice-Presidents | First Vice-President: 1st Half:
2nd Half:
Other Vice-Presidents: |
Commission | Juncker (until 30 November 2019) von der Leyen I (from 1 December 2019) |
Political groups | |
MEPs | 705 |
Elections | May 2019 (Union) |
Treaty on European Union Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union[a 1] | |
Website | Official website |
The ninth European Parliament was elected during the 2019 elections and sat until the tenth European Parliament was sworn in on 16 July 2024.
Major events
[edit]- 23–26 May 2019[1]
- Elections to the 9th European Parliament.
- EPP (182 seats), S&D (154), RE (108), Greens/EFA (74), ID (73), ECR (62), GUE/NGL (41), others (54).
- Elections to the 9th European Parliament.
- 2 July 2019[2]
- First Session (constitutive session) of the 9th Parliament.
- Presiding officer (under Article 14(2) of the Rules): Antonio Tajani (EPP) of Italy, President of the Eighth Parliament.
- First Session (constitutive session) of the 9th Parliament.
- 3 July 2019
- Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of Parliament for the first half of the parliamentary term.[3]
- David Sassoli (S&D) of Italy is elected president, Mairead McGuinness (EPP) of Ireland is elected First Vice-President.[4]
- Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of Parliament for the first half of the parliamentary term.[3]
- 16 July 2019[5]
- Vote on 3 July 2019 EUCO proposal for President of the European Commission.
- Ursula von der Leyen (EPP) of Germany is elected President of the European Commission.[6]
- Vote on 3 July 2019 EUCO proposal for President of the European Commission.
- 30 September-8 October 2019[7]
- Hearings of candidates for European Commissioners.
- Additional hearings, if needed, would take place on 14 and 15 October 2019.
- 31 October 2019 (postponed)
- Original scheduled date for the United Kingdom to withdraw from the European Union, but has been agreed to be postponed for 3 months.
- As Brexit is further postponed, the UK will have to nominate a candidate for a European Commissioner.
- 27 November 2019[8]
- Confirmation vote on the Von der Leyen Commission.
- 1 December 2019
- New European Commission takes office.
- 31 January 2020
- The United Kingdom withdrew from the European Union, subsequently resulting in a reduction in the number of seats in the European Parliament from 751 to 705.
- 12 November 2020
- Roberta Metsola (EPP) of Malta is elected First Vice-President, replacing Mairead McGuinness who has taken the role of European Commissioner.
- 16 December 2020
- Approval of the seven-year budget 2021-2027 of the EU. Decision on keeping an eye on how Next Generation EU funds are spent.[9]
- 11 January 2022
- Death in office of President David Sassoli.
- First Vice-President Roberta Metsola takes the role of Acting President of the European Parliament till the election of a new president.[10]
- 18 January 2022
- Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of Parliament for the second half of the parliamentary term.
- Roberta Metsola (EPP) of Malta is elected president, Othmar Karas (EPP) of Austria is elected First Vice-President[11]
- Election of the President and Vice-Presidents of Parliament for the second half of the parliamentary term.
Leadership
[edit]The President of the European Parliament is chosen through the votes of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and serves a term lasting 2.5 years, with the option for re-election. The responsibilities of the president encompass a diverse array of functions, including presiding over debates and representing the European Parliament in its interactions with other institutions within the European Union.[12]
Fourteen Vice Presidents are elected through a single ballot process, requiring an absolute majority of cast votes for their selection. In situations where the number of successful candidates falls below 14, a second round of voting is conducted to allocate the remaining positions following identical conditions. Should a third round of voting become necessary, a simple majority suffices to occupy the remaining seats. The precedence of Vice Presidents is established by the order in which they are elected, and in cases of a tie, seniority is determined by age. During each round of voting, MEPs have the capacity to cast votes for as many candidates as there are available seats for that particular round. However, they are obligated to vote for more than half of the total positions to be filled.[13]
First Half
[edit]President: David Sassoli
Vice Presidents:
- Mairead McGuinness
- Rainer Wieland
- Othmar Karas
- Ewa Kopacz
- Lívia Járóka
- Pedro Silva Pereira
- Katarina Barley
- Klára Dobrev
- Dita Charanzová
- Nicola Beer
- Heidi Hautala
- Marcel Kolaja
- Dimitrios Papadimoulis
- Fabio Massimo Castaldo
Second Half
[edit]President: Roberta Metsola
Vice Presidents
- Othmar Karas
- Ewa Kopacz
- Rainer Wieland
- Pina Picierno
- Pedro Silva Pereira
- Eva Kaili
- Evelyn Regner
- Katarina Barley
- Dita Charanzová
- Michal Šimečka
- Nicola Beer
- Roberts Zīle
- Dimitrios Papadimoulis
- Heidi Hautala
Elections of the Quaestors
[edit]4 July 2019 election
[edit]The five Quaestors were chosen by acclamation.
Candidate | Group | Votes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Anne Sander | FRA | EPP | 407 | |
Monika Beňová | SVK | S&D | 391 | |
David Casa | MLT | EPP | 391 | |
Gilles Boyer | FRA | RE | 317 | |
Karol Karski | POL | ECR | 261 | |
Source: European Parliament News |
20 January 2022 election
[edit]Four Quaestors were elected on the first round of voting, with the fifth being elected on the second round of voting.
Candidate | Group | Remote Votes | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | 2nd Round | |||||
Anne Sander | FRA | EPP | 622 | |||
Christophe Hansen | LUX | EPP | 576 | |||
Monika Beňová | SVK | S&D | 487 | |||
Fabienne Keller | FRA | RE | 479 | |||
Marcel Kolaja | CZE | G/EFA | 277 | 344 | ||
Karol Karski | POL | ECR | 321 | 324 | ||
Votes cast | 676 | 668 | ||||
Votes needed for election | 339 | 335 | ||||
Blank or void | 12 | n/a | ||||
Voted | 688 | n/a | ||||
Source: European Parliament News |
Political groups and parties
[edit]There were 7 political groups in the parliament, one fewer than the previous parliament. Each MEP could belong to only one group. Political groups could be founded by at least 25 MEPs which came from at least one quarter of all EU member states (namely seven).[2]
Situation before and after Brexit
[edit]Members
[edit]List of members
[edit]MEPs that previously served as president or Prime Minister:
- Andrus Ansip of Estonia: Prime Minister (2005–2014)
- Traian Băsescu of Romania: President (2004–2014)
- Marek Belka of Poland: Prime Minister (2004–2005)
- Silvio Berlusconi of Italy: Prime Minister (1994–1995, 2001–2006, 2008–2011)
- Jerzy Buzek of Poland: Prime Minister (1997–2001)
- Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz of Poland: Prime Minister (1996–1997)
- Dacian Cioloș of Romania: Prime Minister (2015–2017)
- Ewa Kopacz of Poland: Prime Minister (2014–2015)
- Andrius Kubilius of Lithuania: Prime Minister (1999–2000, 2008–2012)
- Leszek Miller of Poland: Prime Minister (2001–2004)
- Alfred Sant of Malta: Prime Minister (1996–1998)
- Sergei Stanishev of Bulgaria: Prime Minister (2005–2009)
- Beata Szydło of Poland: Prime Minister (2015–2017)
- Mihai Tudose of Romania: Prime Minister (2017–2018)
- Guy Verhofstadt of Belgium: Prime Minister (1999–2008)
MEPs that previously served as European Commissioner:
- Andrus Ansip of Estonia: Vice President, Digital Single Market (2014–2019)
- Dacian Cioloș of Romania: Agriculture and Rural Development (2010–2014)
- Corina Crețu of Romania: Regional Policy (2014–2019)
- Danuta Hübner of Poland: Trade (2004), Regional Policy (2004–2009)
- Sandra Kalniete of Latvia: Agriculture and Fisheries (2004)
- Janusz Lewandowski of Poland: Financial Programming and the Budget (2010–2014)
- Antonio Tajani of Italy: Transport (2008–2010), Industry and Entrepreneurship (2010–2014)
MEPs that previously served as presiding officer of a national parliament:
- Vasile Blaga of Romania: President of the Senate (2011–2012)
- Milan Brglez of Slovenia: Speaker of the National Assembly (2014–2018)
- Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz of Poland: Marshal of the Sejm (2005)
- Eero Heinäluoma of Finland: Speaker of Parliament (2011–2015)
- Vangelis Meimarakis of Greece: Speaker of Parliament (2012–2015)
- Radosław Sikorski of Poland: Marshal of the Sejm (2014–2015)
MEPs that previously served as President of the European Parliament:
- Jerzy Buzek of Poland: President (2009–2012)
- Antonio Tajani of Italy: President (2017–2019)
MEPs that previously served as foreign minister:
- Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz of Poland: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2001–2005)
- Anna Fotyga of Poland: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2006–2007)
- José Manuel García-Margallo of Spain: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (2011–2016)
- Marina Kaljurand of Estonia: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015–2016)
- Sandra Kalniete of Latvia: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2002–2004)
- Sven Mikser of Estonia: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2016–2019)
- Urmas Paet of Estonia: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2005–2014)
- Tonino Picula of Croatia: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2000–2003)
- Radosław Sikorski of Poland: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2007–2014)
- Witold Waszczykowski of Poland: Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015–2018)
Seat allocations
[edit]When the United Kingdom left the EU, 27 seats were reallocated to the other member states and the other 46 seats were abolished, for a total of 705 MEPs.[26]
Member state | Seats Pre Brexit (2019–2020) | Seats Post Brexit (2020–2024) | Post Brexit change | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Austria | 18 | 19 | 1 | |
Belgium | 21 | 21 | 0 | |
Bulgaria | 17 | 17 | 0 | |
Croatia | 11 | 12 | 1 | |
Cyprus | 6 | 6 | 0 | |
Czech Republic | 21 | 21 | 0 | |
Denmark | 13 | 14 | 1 | |
Estonia | 6 | 7 | 1 | |
Finland | 13 | 14 | 1 | |
France | 74 | 79 | 5 | |
Germany | 96 | 96 | 0 | |
Greece | 21 | 21 | 0 | |
Hungary | 21 | 21 | 0 | |
Ireland | 11 | 13 | 2 | |
Italy | 73 | 76 | 3 | |
Latvia | 8 | 8 | 0 | |
Lithuania | 11 | 11 | 0 | |
Luxembourg | 6 | 6 | 0 | |
Malta | 6 | 6 | 0 | |
Netherlands | 26 | 29 | 3 | |
Poland | 51 | 52 | 1 | |
Portugal | 21 | 21 | 0 | |
Romania | 32 | 33 | 1 | |
Slovakia | 13 | 14 | 1 | |
Slovenia | 8 | 8 | 0 | |
Spain | 54 | 59 | 5 | |
Sweden | 20 | 21 | 1 | |
United Kingdom | 73 | 0 | 73 | |
Total | 751 | 705 | 46 | |
[27][28][29] |
Post-Brexit political groups membership changes
[edit]Member state | Political groups | MEPs | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EPP (EPP) | S&D (PES) | RE (ALDE, EDP) | ECR (ECR, ECPM) | GUE/NGL (EL, NGLA, EACL) | G/EFA (EGP, EFA) | ID (ID) | NI | ||
Austria | +1 (Grüne) | +1 | |||||||
Croatia | +1 (SDP) | +1 | |||||||
Denmark | +1 (V) | +1 | |||||||
France | +1 (PS) | +1 (LREM) +1 (PD) | +1 | +1 (RN) | +5 | ||||
Estonia | +1 (PP) | +1 | |||||||
Finland | +1 (VIHR) | +1 | |||||||
Ireland | +1 (FG) | +1 (FF) | +2 | ||||||
Italy | +1 (FI) | +1 (FdI) | +1 (LN) | +3 | |||||
Netherlands | +1(VVD) | +1 (FvD) | +1 (PVV) | +3 | |||||
Poland | +1 (PiS) | +1 | |||||||
Romania | +1 (PSD) | +1 | |||||||
Slovakia | +1 (KDH) | +1 | |||||||
Spain | +1 (PP) | +1 (PSOE) | +1 (C's) | +1 (VOX) | +1 (JxCat) | +5 | |||
Sweden | +1 (MP) | +1 | |||||||
United Kingdom | -10 (Lab) | -16 (LibDem) -1 (Alliance Party) | -4 (Con) | -1 (SF) | -7 (Green) -3 (SNP) -1 (PC) | -1 (DUP) -29 (Brexit Party) | -73 | ||
Total | +5 | -6 | -11 | 0 | -1 | -7 | +3 | -29 | MEPs |
EPP | S&D | RE | ECR | GUE/NGL | G/EFA | ID | NI |
Former members
[edit]Group | Name | State | MEP until | Reason | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
S&D | André Bradford | POR | 18 July 2019 | Death | [24] | |
S&D | Roberto Gualtieri | ITA | 5 September 2019 | Named Minister of Economy and Finances of Italy | [25] | |
EPP | Adina-Ioana Vălean | ROM | 1 December 2019 | Approved as European Commissioner for Transport | ||
EPP | Dubravka Šuica | CRO | 1 December 2019 | Approved as European Commission VP for Democracy and Demography | ||
S&D | Nicolas Schmit | LUX | 1 December 2019 | Approved as European Commissionioner for Jobs and Social Rights | ||
EPP | Mairead McGuinness | IRE | 12 October 2020 | Approved as European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union | ||
S&D | David Sassoli | ITA | 11 January 2022 | Death | ||
EPP | Silvio Berlusconi | ITA | 12 October 2022 | To take up seat in the Italian Senate |
Elected MEPs that did not take the seat
[edit]Group | Name | State | Reason | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
S&D | Frans Timmermans | NED | Remained European Commissioner for the Netherlands | [30] | |
EPP | Mariya Gabriel | BUL | Remained European Commissioner for Bulgaria | [31] | |
EPP | Valdis Dombrovskis | LAT | Remained European Commissioner for Latvia | [32] |
Working bodies
[edit]Standing committees
[edit]MEPs are divided up among 20 standing committees. Each MEP is usually member of one committee and a substitute member of another. Committees discuss legislative proposals from the commission before the European Parliament decides on them in plenary session. The European Parliament has an equal role to the Council of the EU in the ordinary legislative procedure, which is usually used in decision-making process at the EU level.[33]
Each committee elects its chair and vice chairs to lead the work of the committee. Committee chairs are members of the Conference of Committee Chairs, which coordinates the work of all the committees.[33]
Other bodies
[edit]Body | Members | President | Members | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conference of Presidents | BCPR | 11 | S&D | David Sassoli (ex-officio) 1st Half | ITA | President of the European Parliament Presidents of political groups One NI MEP, invited by the President (no voting right) | |
EPP | Roberta Metsola (ex-officio) 2nd Half | MLT | |||||
The Bureau | BURO | 20 | S&D | David Sassoli (ex-officio) 1st Half | ITA | President of the European Parliament Vice Presidents of the European Parliament Quaestors (in advisory capacity) | |
EPP | Roberta Metsola (ex-officio) 2nd Half | MLT | |||||
College of Quaestors | QUE | 5 | / | Quaestors | |||
Conference of Committee Chairs | CCC | 22 | EPP | Antonio Tajani | ITA | Chairs of all standing and temporary committees | |
Conference of Delegation Chairs | CDC | 45 | S&D | Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero | ESP | Chairs of all standing interparliamentary delegations | |
Sources:[37][38] |
Composition of the executive
[edit]Executive | ||||||||
President of the European Council | President of the European Commission | High Representative | ||||||
Charles Michel (ALDE) of Belgium from 1 December 2019 | Ursula von der Leyen (EPP) of Germany from 1 December 2019 | Josep Borrell (PES) of Spain from 1 December 2019 |
Parliament term: 2 July 2019 - TBA | ||||
European Council | ||||
President Donald Tusk (EPP), until 31 November 2019 | ||||
President Charles Michel (ALDE), from 1 December 2019 | ||||
European Commission | ||||
Juncker Commission, until 30 November 2019 | ||||
President Jean-Claude Juncker (EPP), until 30 November 2019 | ||||
High Representative Federica Mogherini (PES), until 30 November 2019 | ||||
Von der Leyen Commission, taking office on 1 December 2019 | ||||
President Ursula von der Leyen (EPP), from 1 December 2019 | ||||
High Representative Josep Borrell (PES), from 1 December 2019 |
Appointment of the new executive
[edit]On 2 July 2019 European Council finished a three-day-long summit with a decision to propose the following for approval by the Parliament:[39]
- Ursula von der Leyen (EPP) for President
- Josep Borrell (PES) for High Representative
European Parliament confirmed Ursula von Der Leyen as President of the European Commission on 16 July 2019.
On the same summit Charles Michel (ALDE), incumbent Prime Minister of Belgium was elected a new President of the European Council and President of Euro Summit for a 2.5 years term.
President of the Commission Confirmation
[edit]Secret paper ballot took place on 16 July 2019.
Candidate | Votes cast | Majority | In favor | Against | Blank | Source | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EPP | Ursula von der Leyen | GER | 733 | 374 | 383 | 327 | 22 | [6] |
Von der Leyen Commission Confirmation
[edit]Following the election of the new President of the commission, President-elect called upon member states to propose candidates for European Commissioners. The President-elect, in agreement with the European Council, assigned to each proposed candidate a portfolio, and the Council sent the list of candidates to the European Parliament. Candidates were then questioned about their knowledge of the assigned portfolio and confirmed by European Parliament Committees. When all of the candidates were confirmed by the respective committee, European Parliament took a vote of confirmation of the new European Commission in the plenary session. European Commission was then officially appointed by the European Council using qualified majority.[40] Commissioners took the oath of office before the Court of Justice of the EU before officially taking office.
Coalition | Commission | Votes cast | Majority | In favor | Against | Abstain | Source | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EPP | Von der Leyen Commission | 707 | 374[citation needed] | 461 | 157 | 89 | [41] | |
S&D | ||||||||
RE |
Commissioners-designate Confirmations
[edit]The responsible committee held a 3-hour hearing of the Commissioner-designate to examine the candidate's competence and suitability. Committee decided if candidate is suitable to become a European Commissioner and if their knowledge of the portfolio is sufficient. After each hearing, the committee voted on the candidate. Decisions of the committee were first taken by the coordinators of the EP political groups, at this point each candidate needed support of 2/3 of coordinators, if support was reached, the candidate was confirmed. If such support was not reached, then committee as a whole took a vote on a Commissioner-designate, where a candidate needed the support of the majority of committee members. If candidate was rejected by the committee as well, President-elect could propose a new candidate, in which case a new hearing would take place for a new candidate. Coordinators could also decide to hold additional hearing of 1.5 hours or demand additional written answers. If there were more committees hearing one candidate, all committees would give a joint evaluation.[citation needed]
The first round of hearings took place from 30 September until 8 October 2019, followed by the evaluation by the BCPR (Conference of Presidents) on 15 October 2019. If any of the candidates would be rejected by the responsible committee, new hearings would take place on 14 and 15 October 2019, followed by BCPR evaluation on 16 October 2019. BCPR closed hearings process on 17 October 2019.[7] Before the hearings begin, Committee on Legal Affairs, on 19 September 2019, examined if there was a possibility of a conflict of interests for any of the candidates for commissioners.[citation needed]
The United Kingdom, which had been expected to leave the EU on 31 October 2019, did not nominate a candidate for commissioner.[42]
It was reported by Euractiv on 26 September 2019 that commissioners-designate László Trócsányi of Hungary (Neighbourhood and Enlargement) and Rovana Plumb of Romania (Transport) will be questioned by the European Parliament Legal Affairs Committee about their declarations of interests due to potential conflict of interests and "discrepancies in property statements". Other commissioners-designate were approved by the committee, including Didier Reynders of Belgium (Justice) and Sylvie Goulard of France (Internal Market) who are under investigation by respective national authorities due to corruption allegations or misuse of EU money, according to one of the MEPs because the Committee does not have the authority to question candidates beyond facts stated in the declarations od interests. Euractiv also reports that Janusz Wojciechowski of Poland (Agriculture) might as well be questioned by the committee.[43] Euractiv reported later that day that Rovana Plumb of Romania was rejected as a European Commissioner-designate by 10 votes to 6 (with 2 abstentions). Hungarian Commissioner-designate László Trócsányi was rejected on 26 September as well by 11 votes to 9 due to his personal finances in connection with his law firm, he founded before becoming Minister of Justice and due to concerns about "connections to Russia" in relation to extradition of Russian suspects to Russia.[44] It is up to the President-elect Ursula von der Leyen to take further decisions on candidates, while JURI approval is a necessary precondition for hearings to take place. This was the first time that candidates have been rejected by the JURI Committee.[citation needed]
Following the JURI Committee decision to reject László Trócsányi, he published a statement on his Twitter account later that day, stating that he will take all legal steps against the decision.[45] This could have an impact on the process of formation of the new European Commission which is due to take office on 1 November 2019.[citation needed]
The Legal Affairs Committee was asked to decide on both rejected candidates again and on 30 September 2019 JURI again rejected both of the candidates, Plumb with 13 votes to 7 and Trócsányi with 12 votes to 9.[46] Following the vote, President-elect Von der Leyen asked the national governments of Romania and Hungary to propose new candidates. Hungary already proposed a new candidate Olivér Várhelyi, its Permanent Representative to the EU.[47]
According to several media reports hearings before the European Parliament committees could be tough for:[48][49]
- Janusz Wojciechowski - European Commissioner-designate for Agriculture (due to ongoing investigation by OLAF regarding irregularities in the reimbursement of travel expenses when he was MEP; it was reported on 27 September by Politico that OLAF dropped investigation because Wojciechowski already paid the money back to the European Parliament)[50][51]
- Didier Reynders - European Commissioner-designate for Justice (due to investigation by the national authorities regarding corruption and money laundering in the Democratic Republic of Congo; it was reported by Politico on 27 September 2019 that Belgian prosecutor dropped the investigation against Reynders and found no wrongdoing)[52][53]
- Sylvie Goulard - European Commissioner-designate for Internal Market (due to alleged misuse of EU funds)[54]
- Paolo Gentiloni - European Commissioner-designate for Economy (due to his role in Italian economy as Prime Minister)[49]
- Dubravka Šuica - Vice-President-designate for Democracy and Demography (due to personal finances and possession of many real estate worth more than 5 million euros in light of her work as teacher, mayor and MP, and due to her views on women's rights, especially freedom of birth and due to her past votings as MEP where she objected abortion)[55]
Schedule of the hearings
[edit]Date | 9:00-12:00 | 14:30-17:30 | 18:30-21:30 | ||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 September 2019 | Maroš Šefčovič of Slovakia Vice-President-designate for Inter-Institutional Relations and Foresight | Phil Hogan of Ireland European Commissioner-designate for Trade | |||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||
Mariya Gabriel of Bulgaria European Commissioner-designate for Innivation and Youth | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
1 October 2019 | Nicolas Schmit of Luxembourg European Commissioner-designate for Jobs | Janusz Wojciechowski[56] of Poland European Commissioner-designate for Agriculture HEARING NO. 1 | László Trócsányi[57] of Hungary European Commissioner-designate for Neighbourhood and Enlargement NO HEARING HELD | ||||||||||||||||
|
|
| |||||||||||||||||
Jutta Urpilainen of Finland European Commissioner-designate for International Partnerships | Ylva Johansson of Sweden European Commissioner-designate for Home Affairs | Stella Kyriakidou of Cyprus European Commissioner-designate for Health | |||||||||||||||||
|
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2 October 2019 | Didier Reynders of Belgium European Commissioner-designate for Justice | Helena Dalli of Malta European Commissioner-designate for Equality | Elisa Ferreira of Portugal European Commissioner-designate for Cohesion and Reforms | ||||||||||||||||
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| |||||||||||||||||
Rovana Plumb[58] of Romania European Commissioner-designate for Transport NO HEARING HELD | Sylvie Goulard of France European Commissioner-designate for Internal Market HEARING NO. 1 | Janez Lenarčič of Slovenia European Commissioner-designate for Crisis Management | |||||||||||||||||
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3 October 2019 | Paolo Gentiloni of Italy European Commissioner-designate for Economy | Virginijus Sinkevičius of Lithuania European Commissioner-designate for Environment and Oceans | Margaritis Schinas of Greece Vice-President-designate for Protecting our European Way of Life | ||||||||||||||||
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| |||||||||||||||||
Kadri Simson of Estonia European Commissioner-designate for Energy | Johannes Hahn of Austria European Commissioner-designate for Budget and Administration | Dubravka Šuica of Croatia Vice-President-designate for Democracy and Demography | |||||||||||||||||
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7 October 2019 | Věra Jourová of the Czech Republic Vice-President-designate for Values and Transparency | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
Josep Borrell of Spain Vice-President-designate for A Stronger Europe in the World and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
8 October 2019 | Valdis Dombrovskis of Latvia Executive Vice-President-designate for Economy that Works for People and European Commissioner-designate for Financial Markets | Margrethe Vestager of Denmark Executive Vice-President-designate for Europe Fit for Digital Age and European Commissioner-designate for Competition | Frans Timmermans of the Netherlands Executive Vice-President-designate for the European Green Deal and European Commissioner-designate for Climate Action | ||||||||||||||||
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Janusz Wojciechowski[56] of Poland European Commissioner-designate for Agriculture HEARING NO. 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
10 October 2019 | Sylvie Goulard of France European Commissioner-designate for Internal Market HEARING NO. 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
Source:[59] Confirmed candidate Candidate with additional hearing Rejected candidate Responsible Committee Associated Committee |
Coordinators of political groups in the responsible committees decided that additional written answers will be requested by and potentially additional hearing of 1.5 hours should be held for:
- Janusz Wojciechowski of Poland, European Commissioner-designate for Agriculture (additional hearing on 8 October 2019)[60]
- Sylvie Goulard of France, European Commissioner-designate for Internal Market (additional hearing on 10 October 2019)[61]
- Ylva Johansson of Sweden, European Commissioner-designate for Home Affairs
Hearings
[edit]Candidate | Official nomination | Portfolio | Committee vote | Refs | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Committee | In favor | Against | Abstain | |||||||
EPP | Johannes Hahn | AUT | 22 July 2019 | Budget and Administration | 3 October 2019 | BUDG | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [62] | |||
CONT | |||||||||||
JURI | |||||||||||
ALDE | Didier Reynders | BEL | Justice | 2 October 2019 | LIBE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | |||||
JURI | |||||||||||
IMCO | |||||||||||
EPP | Mariya Gabriel | BUL | 23 July 2019 | Innovation and Youth | 30 September 2019 | CULT | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [63][64] | |||
ITRE | |||||||||||
EPP | Dubravka Šuica | CRO | 22 August 2019 | Democracy and Demography (Vice President) | 3 October 2019 | AFCO | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [65][66] | |||
EMPL | |||||||||||
EPP | Stella Kyriakidou | CYP | 23 July 2019 | Health | 1 October 2019 | ENVI | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [67][68] | |||
AGRI | |||||||||||
ALDE | Věra Jourová | CZE | 26 August 2019 | Values and Transparency (Vice President) | 7 October 2019 | LIBE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [69][70] | |||
AFCO | |||||||||||
JURI | |||||||||||
ALDE | Margrethe Vestager | DEN | 1 August 2019 | A Europe Fit for the Digital Age (Executive Vice President) | 8 October 2019 | ECON | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [71] | |||
ITRE | |||||||||||
IMCO | |||||||||||
JURI | |||||||||||
ALDE | Kadri Simson | EST | 22 July 2019 | Energy | 3 October 2019 | ITRE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [72][73] | |||
ENVI | |||||||||||
PES | Jutta Urpilainen | FIN | 22 July 2019 | International Partnerships | 1 October 2019 | DEVE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [74] | |||
Ind. | Thierry Breton | FRA | Internal Market | IMCO | |||||||
ITRE | |||||||||||
JURI | |||||||||||
CULT | |||||||||||
EPP | Margaritis Schinas | GRE | 23 July 2019 | Promoting the European Way of Life (Vice President) | 3 October 2019 | LIBE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [75][76] | |||
CULT | |||||||||||
EMPL | |||||||||||
EPP | Olivér Várhelyi | HUN | 1 October 2019 | Neighbourhood and Enlargement | AFET | [77] | |||||
EPP | Phil Hogan | IRL | 31 July 2019 | Trade | 30 September 2019 | INTA | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [78][79] | |||
PES | Paolo Gentiloni | ITA | 6 September 2019 | Economy | 3 October 2019 | ECON | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [80][81] | |||
BUDG | |||||||||||
EMPL | |||||||||||
EPP | Valdis Dombrovskis | LAT | 23 July 2019 | An Economy that Works for People (Executive Vice President) | 8 October 2019 | ECON | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [82] | |||
EMPL | |||||||||||
BUDG | |||||||||||
Ind. | Virginijus Sinkevičius | LIT | 28 August 2019 | Environment, Oceans and Fisheries | 3 October 2019 | ENVI | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [83] | |||
PECH | |||||||||||
PES | Nicolas Schmit | LUX | Jobs and Social Rights | 1 October 2019 | EMPL | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | |||||
ECON | |||||||||||
PES | Helena Dalli | MLT | 31 July 2019 | Equality | 2 October 2019 | FEMM | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [84] | |||
EMPL | |||||||||||
LIBE | |||||||||||
PES | Frans Timmermans | NED | 24 July 2019 | European Green Deal (Executive Vice President) | 8 October 2019 | ENVI | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [85] | |||
ITRE | |||||||||||
TRAN | |||||||||||
ECR | Janusz Wojciechowski | POL | 2 September 2019 | Agriculture | 10 October 2019 | AGRI | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [86] | |||
ENVI | |||||||||||
PES | Elisa Ferreira | POR | 26 August 2019 | Cohesion and Reforms | 2 October 2019 | REGI | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [87] | |||
BUDG | |||||||||||
ECON | |||||||||||
PES | Adina-Ioana Vălean | ROM | 7 October 2019 | Transport | TRAN | [88] | |||||
ENVI | |||||||||||
PES | Maroš Šefčovič | SVK | 19 July 2019 | Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight (Vice President) | 30 September 2019 | AFCO | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [89][90] | |||
JURI | |||||||||||
PETI | |||||||||||
ITRE | |||||||||||
ALDE | Janez Lenarčič | SLO | 26 July 2019 | Crisis Management | 2 October 2019 | DEVE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [91][92] | |||
ENVI | |||||||||||
PES | Josep Borrell | ESP | Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (Vice President) | 7 October 2019 | AFET | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [39][93][94] | ||||
PES | Ylva Johansson | SWE | 8 August 2019 | Home Affairs | 1 October 2019 | LIBE | Confirmed by the Coordinators no Committee vote | [95] | |||
Responsible Committee Associated Committee |
Rejected candidates
[edit]Candidate | Portfolio | Date | Reason | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PES | Rovana Plumb | ROM | Transport | 26 September 2019 | Rejected by the JURI Committee due to discrepancies in her declarations of interests. | |
EPP | László Trócsányi | HUN | Neighbourhood and Enlargement | 26 September 2019 | Rejected by the JURI Committee due to his personal finances in connection with his law firm and possible connections with Russia. | |
ALDE | Sylvie Goulard | FRA | Internal Market | 10 October 2019 | Rejected by the responsible committees after the hearing with 82 votes against, 29 in favour and 1 abstention. |
Council presidency
[edit]Presidency of the Council of the EU | ||||||||
Belgium 1 January 2024 - 30 June 2024 |
The Council of the European Union (Council) is one of three EU institutions involved in the EU lawmaking process. It is the de facto upper house of the EU legislature, the European Parliament being the lower house, with an equal role in the ordinary legislative procedure. The Council consists of ministerial representatives from member states' national governments. Votes are decided by qualified majority (55% of member states and 65% of EU population).
Every six months, a new EU member state takes over the presidency of the council. As presiding country, it organises Council meetings (with the help of Secretariat General) and decides on their agendas. These agendas are prepared in cooperation with other two member states that are part of each trio, which form common policy agendas over their 18-month period.
Presidency of the Council of the European Union | Parliament | Commission | High Representative FAC President | European Council | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Member state | Trio | Term | Head of Government | Cabinet | Government coalition | ||||||||||||||
Romania | T9 | 1 January 2019 – 30 June 2019 | PES | Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă (PSD) | Dăncilă | PES | PSD | VIII | Juncker | PES | Federica Mogherini | EPP | Donald Tusk | ||||||
ALDE | ALDE | ||||||||||||||||||
Finland | 1 July 2019 – 31 December 2019 | PES | Prime Minister Antti Rinne (SDP) until 10 December 2019 | Rinne | PES | SDP | |||||||||||||
ALDE | Kesk. | IX | |||||||||||||||||
EGP | VIHR | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | Vas. | ||||||||||||||||||
ALDE | SFP | Von der Leyen | PES | Josep Borrell | ALDE | Charles Michel | |||||||||||||
Prime Minister Sanna Marin (SDP) from 10 December 2019 | Marin | PES | SDP | ||||||||||||||||
ALDE | Kesk. | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | Vas. | ||||||||||||||||||
EGP | VIHR | ||||||||||||||||||
ALDE | SFP | ||||||||||||||||||
Croatia | 1 January 2020 – 30 June 2020 | EPP | Prime Minister Andrej Plenković (HDZ) | Plenković | EPP | HDZ | |||||||||||||
ALDE | HNS | ||||||||||||||||||
Germany | T10 | 1 July 2020 – 31 December 2020 | EPP | Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) | Merkel IV | EPP | CDU | ||||||||||||
PES | SPD | ||||||||||||||||||
EPP | CSU | ||||||||||||||||||
Portugal | 1 January 2021 – 30 June 2021 | PES | Prime Minister António Costa (PS) | Costa II | PES | PS | |||||||||||||
Slovenia | 1 July 2021 – 31 December 2021 | EPP | Prime Minister Janez Janša (SDS) | Janša III | EPP | SDS | |||||||||||||
ALDE | SMC | ||||||||||||||||||
EPP | NSi | ||||||||||||||||||
EDP | DeSUS | ||||||||||||||||||
France | T11 | 1 January 2022 – 30 June 2022 | Ind. | Prime Minister Jean Castex (DVD-EC) | Castex | Ind. | LREM | ||||||||||||
Ind. | TDP | ||||||||||||||||||
Ind. | EC | ||||||||||||||||||
EDP | MoDem | ||||||||||||||||||
ALDE | RAD | ||||||||||||||||||
Ind. | Agir | ||||||||||||||||||
Czech Republic | 1 July 2022 – 31 December 2022 | ECR | Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) | Fiala | ECR | ODS | |||||||||||||
EPP | STAN | ||||||||||||||||||
EPP | KDU-ČSL | ||||||||||||||||||
PPEU | Pirates | ||||||||||||||||||
EPP | TOP 09 | ||||||||||||||||||
Sweden | 1 January 2023 – 30 June 2023 | EPP | Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) | Kristersson | EPP | M | |||||||||||||
EPP | KD | ||||||||||||||||||
ALDE | L | ||||||||||||||||||
Spain | T12 | 1 July 2023 – 31 December 2023 | PES | Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (PSOE) | Sánchez II until 21 November 2023 | PES | PSOE | ||||||||||||
MLP | Podemos | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | PCE | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | IU | ||||||||||||||||||
EGP | CatComú | ||||||||||||||||||
Sánchez III from 21 November 2023 | PES | PSOE | |||||||||||||||||
Ind. | SMR | ||||||||||||||||||
PES | PSC | ||||||||||||||||||
EGP | CatComú | ||||||||||||||||||
Ind. | MM | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | IU | ||||||||||||||||||
PEL | PCE | ||||||||||||||||||
Belgium | 1 January 2024 – 30 June 2024 | ALDE | Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open Vld) | De Croo | ALDE | Open Vld | |||||||||||||
ALDE | MR | ||||||||||||||||||
PES | Vooruit | ||||||||||||||||||
PES | PS | ||||||||||||||||||
EPP | CD&V | ||||||||||||||||||
EGP | Groen | ||||||||||||||||||
EGP | Ecolo | ||||||||||||||||||
Hungary | 1 July 2024 – 31 December 2024 | TBD | TBD | TBD | X | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Appointments
[edit]European Parliament has role in the appointment of:[96]
- President of the European Commission
- Members of the European Commission
- Members of the European Court of Auditors
- Members of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank and supervisory board of the European Central Bank
- economic governance bodies:
- Chair and Vice Chair of the supervisory board of the ECB Supervisory
- Chair, Vice Chair and full-time members of the Single Resolution Board of the Single Resolution Mechanism
- Chairs and executive directors of the European Supervisory Authorities (European Banking Authority, European Securities and Markets Authority, European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority)
- Managing Director and Deputy Managing Director of the European Fund for Strategic Investments
Position | Candidate | EP Role | Appointer | Hearing | European Parliament vote | Source | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Name | Country | Date | Committee | In favor | Against | Abstain | Date | Votes cast | Majority | In favor | Against | Abstain | |||||
President of the European Central Bank | EPP | Christine Lagarde | FRA | Consultation | European Council | 4 September 2019 | ECON | 37 | 11 | 4 | 17 September 2019 | 649 | 325 | 349 | 206 | 49 | [97][98] | |
Vice Chair of the supervisory board of the European Central Bank | Ind | Yves Mersch | LUX | Consultation | Governing Council of the European Central Bank | 4 September 2019 | ECON | 35 | 14 | 4 | 17 September 2019 | 678 | 340 | 379 | 230 | 69 | ||
Chief European Public Prosecutor | Ind | Laura Codruța Kövesi | ROM | Appointment | European Parliament Council of the EU | Confirmed by the BCPR, no EP vote. | [99] |
Statistics
[edit]European Parliament statistics
[edit]There were 266 women MEPs, 37.7% of the whole Parliament. Kira Peter-Hansen of Denmark was the youngest MEP at 21, while Silvio Berlusconi (former Prime Minister of Italy), was the oldest at the age of 82. The average age of all MEPs was 50.[100]
387 of the MEPs were newly elected and weren't members of European Parliament before. 295 MEPs were also members of the previous Parliament. 16 of the MEPs held position before, but not between 2014 and 2019.[100]
Women MEPs | New MEPs | Age | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Youngest | Average | Oldest | ||
266 / 705 | 387 / 705 | 21 | 50 | 82 |
Statistics by member states
[edit]Most bureau positions is held by Germany, while on the other side Slovenia is the only member state that has no bureau positions. With 5, Germany has most Committee Chairmen, followed by France with 4.
Finland (with 7 women out of 13 MEPs) and Sweden (with 11 out of 20) are the only member states with more women MEPS than men. Austria, Latvia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Slovenia have a gender parity. Cyprus is the only member state without any women.
Slovakia has the highest percent of newly elected MEPs at 85%, while Malta only has 33% of newly elected MEPs.[100]
With 60 years of age Lithuania has the oldest national delegation, while Malta has the youngest at 44. Sweden has the youngest "oldest" MEP at the age of 58 and Lithuania has the oldest "youngest" MEP at the age of 54.[100]
Member state | Positions | Women MEPs | New MEPs | Age | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EP Bureau | Committees' bureaus | Groups' bureaus | Youngest | Average | Oldest | |||
Austria | 1 / 20 | 3 / 110 | 0 / 55 | 9 / 18 | 12 / 18 | 27 | 47 | 61 |
Belgium | 0 / 20 | 4 / 110 | 3 / 55 | 7 / 21 | 11 / 21 | 34 | 52 | 68 |
Bulgaria | 0 / 20 | 1 / 110 | 2 / 55 | 5 / 17 | 8 / 17 | 30 | 45 | 67 |
Croatia | 0 / 20 | 0 / 110 | 2 / 55 | 4 / 11 | 6 / 11 | 28 | 47 | 62 |
Cyprus | 0 / 20 | 0 / 110 | 1 / 55 | 0 / 6 | 3 / 6 | 49 | 55 | 59 |
Czech Republic | 2 / 20 | 4 / 110 | 0 / 55 | 7 / 21 | 11 / 21 | 26 | 46 | 66 |
Denmark | 0 / 20 | 2 / 110 | 1 / 55 | 6 / 14 | 8 / 14 | 21 | 46 | 74 |
Estonia | 0 / 20 | 1 / 110 | 0 / 55 | 2 / 6 | 3 / 6 | 28 | 48 | 62 |
Finland | 1 / 20 | 1 / 110 | 0 / 55 | 8 / 13 | 6 / 13 | 40 | 55 | 73 |
France | 2 / 20 | 10 / 110 | 6 / 55 | 37 / 74 | 51 / 74 | 23 | 50 | 72 |
Germany | 3 / 20 | 17 / 110 | 6 / 55 | 35 / 96 | 50 / 96 | 26 | 49 | 78 |
Greece | 1 / 20 | 3 / 110 | 1 / 55 | 5 / 21 | 11 / 21 | 33 | 52 | 67 |
Hungary | 2 / 20 | 3 / 110 | 1 / 55 | 8 / 21 | 8 / 21 | 30 | 46 | 66 |
Ireland | 1 / 20 | 0 / 110 | 1 / 55 | 6 / 11 | 7 / 11 | 32 | 54 | 68 |
Italy | 2 / 20 | 8 / 110 | 3 / 55 | 30 / 73 | 41 / 73
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