Socialists in the European Parliament have warned they may withhold support for the next European Commission unless their key demands are addressed.
They include ensuring “gender balance”, defending social rights across Europe, respecting the spitzenkandidat process for selecting EC leadership and keeping what they called “the far-right” out of key roles.
“If these expectations are not met, the leaders of the Party of the European Socialists and the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament warn it will be very difficult, even impossible, to support the Commissioners presented by [EC President] Ursula von der Leyen,” they said on September 10.
Both groups expressed concern over the potential exclusion of the Socialist representative Nicolas Schmit from the EC.
They argued that sidelining Schmit would go against a precedent set in 2014, undermining the democratic process, which they said did not align with European Union values.
“Ignoring the spitzenkandidat process [which attempts to link parliament parties and roles in the EC], undermining gender balance in the [EC], placing an employment commissioner whose commitment to social rights is questionable at best, proactively bringing ECR [European Conservatives and Reformists] into the heart of the Commission – this would be the recipe to lose progressive support,” said S&D President Iratxe García.
It was the “composition of the next parliament” that would decide this Commission, von der Leyen had said before the EP elections in June.
“A pro-European majority with a pro-European agreement exists. It must be put into practice now,” she added.
In their statement published on September 10, the Socialists emphasised that their backing of von der Leyen had always come with clear expectations.
“Our support has never been a blank cheque. We have always been clear that the next Commission must meet our expectations, both on policy and principle. The Commission President must ensure that the College [of Commissioners from 27 EU countries] is ready to fully honour the political guidelines that we supported,” said PES President Stefan Löfven.
The S&D stressed that the EC must reflect what it called progressive values and the pro-European majority in the European Parliament.
The issue of gender parity raised by the Socialists poses a major challenge for von der Leyen as she attempts to form the next EC.
While she has requested that national governments submit two candidates — one male and one female — many countries have ignored that, choosing instead to prioritise domestic political considerations or traditional party alignments.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has announced his government’s nominee for Poland’s European Commissioner — without first consulting President Andrzej Duda who, by law, must countersign the nomination. https://t.co/Vm2c6jcxpG
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) August 14, 2024
