Janusz Lewandowski, a member of the European Parliament (EPP-ED) who was re-elected in June, was chosen by Prime Minister Donald Tusk to replace Danuta Hübner, currently commissioner for regional policy. Ms. Hübner won a seat in the European Parliament at the last EU elections.
Lewandowski is hoping to get a different portfolio in the next Commission, which is expected to be appointed this autumn. Poland is seeking to secure either the economic and monetary affairs, the single market or the enterprise and industry portfolio. But the difficulties the country created during negotiations on the Lisbon Treaty and its subsequent ratification may hamper its ambitions.
Lewandowski, an economics advisor to the Solidarity movement in the 1980s, served as Poland's minister for privatisation on two occasions (1990-1991 and 1992-1993) and is one of the fathers of the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
An MEP in the last legislature, Lewandowski chaired the parliamentary budget committee for his first two and a half years but had to leave when another Pole, Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, took the helm of the foreign affairs committee in 2007.
According to Polish media, Tusk had already made up his mind before the election results but his head of cabinet, Sławomir Nowak, insisted yesterday (16 June) that the decision had not yet been taken.
"The new commissioner will be chosen according to the portfolio," Nowak said. "If it's the portfolio concerning markets, the best candidate is Janusz Lewandowski. If it concerns problems that Commissioner Hübner dealt with, it will certainly be Hübner. And if it's another portfolio, which corresponds better to Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, it will be Jacek Saryusz-Wolski," he told Polish radio.
Danuta Hüber, Poland's current commissioner, won a seat in the European Parliament for the centre-right Civic Platform (EPP) in the Warsaw constituency, although she is not a member of the party. In 2004, she became commissioner under a socialist government.
Tusk and Polish President Lech Kaczyński are expected to discuss today (17 June) Jerzy Buzek's chances of becoming the next president of the European Parliament. The prime minister has to convince the president to ask conservative PiS (Law and Justice) MEPs to support Buzek's bid. "The talks are going very well," Mikołaj Dowgielewicz, EU affairs minister, told Gazeta Wyborcza on Monday.
Tusk will then meet Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi tomorrow (18 June) ahead of the EU summit to convince him that his candidate Mario Mauro has no chance of being supported by the biggest EU countries (EurActiv 09/06/2009).
Jerzy Buzek would become president for two and a half years, as the Christian Democrats usually share the five-year term with the Socialists.
Outgoing commissioner Danuta Hübner can now hope to head one of the Parliament committees, probably on regional policy. As a result, Jacek Saryusz-Wolski is unlikely to continue as chair of the foreign affairs committee. But the former polish minister will still chair the EPP group's Polish faction in the Parliament, sources in the EU assembly have already confirmed.
Other commissioner nominations
Other member states have already put forward names of potential candidates to be nominated as commissioners.
Despite the desire of the current Czech government to nominate a new Czech commissioner as soon as possible, the leaders of the two biggest Czech parties - the centre-right ODS and centre-left Social Democrats (ČSSD) - said they would wait until the national election that will take place in October.
This decision was criticised by Prime Minister Jan Fischer and other members of cabinet. Asked by journalists on 15 June whether he was afraid that none of the most important portfolios would be left by the time the new Czech government is formed, Fischer said he "shared journalists' concerns".
As for the name of the next Czech commissioner, speculation is rife. The Social Democrats proposed a few names such as Vladimír Špidla, current Czech commissioner, Jan Švejnar, a former unsuccessful presidential candidate (an economist and professor at University of Michigan), and Pavel Telička, a former commissioner and pre-accession negotiator with the EU (he was commissioner for a few months before Špidla was appointed). But the Civic Democrats (ODS) are undecided and claim their main priority is a portfolio. Names should then be found accordingly, they argue.
There is also media speculation that ODS leader Mirek Topolánek could be interested in the job, but he constantly denies such suggestions.
In France, while Jacques Barrot has announced his willingness to serve another term, President Nicolas Sarkozy seems to support Agriculture Minister and newly-elected MEP Michel Barnier (EPP) as his replacement. Barnier was commissioner for regional policy between 1999 and 2004, and coordinated Sarkozy's campaign for the European elections. "It is clear that he is at the top of the list of the potential candidates," the French President said.
But some observers have also mentioned former Europe Minister Jean-Pierre Jouyet, who is currently chairman of French financial market watchdog AMF (Autorité des marchés financiers). France has made no secret of its desire to grab the internal market portfolio currently held by Irishman Charlie McCreevy. This is a strategic position as the portfolio covers regulation of financial markets, which is dear to the French president, and Jouyet's current role would make him a perfect fit.
In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel is backing her fellow Christian Democrat Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble. In the past, other CDU politicians have been mooted for the post, including Friedrich Merz, Peter Hintze and Elmar Brok.
Having served two terms, Swedish commissioner Margot Wallström will step down. Among other names, Gunilla Carlsson, the country's minister for international development cooperation, could become development commissioner.
Ján Figel is not expected to stay on as Slovak commissioner, given that his political party is out of government. One name that has been circulated is Slovak EU Ambassador Maros Šefcovic.
The two rival parties in Romania’s governing coalition in, PSD (Social Democrats) and PD-L (Democrat-Liberals) are both claiming the right to nominate the next commissioner. They are arguing over who really won the elections, as both of them will have the same number of MEPs (11), after Elena Basescu, daughter of president, returned to the PD-L after her successful independent candidacy.
PD-L sources claim that the president won the support of France and Greece for a substantial portfolio, like agriculture. Former minister Dacian Ciolos could be nominated for the job. Ciolos graduated at the Ecole nationale supérieure agronomique in Montpellier (France). Former Justice Minister Monica Macovei is another potential commissioner backed by the centre-right PD-L.
In the socialist camp, the names of MEP Adrian Severin and Vasile Puscas (head of Romania’s European affairs department) are circulating.
In Luxembourg, Viviane Reding is expected to serve a third term and hopes to secure the information society portfolio for another five years, having topped the poll in the European elections.
(Network partners participated to this article.)
