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EU-POLITICS-MIGRATION
EU changes title for migration commissioner after outcry
BRUSSELS, Nov 13, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The incoming European Commission chief
has changed the title of her migration commissioner from “Protecting our
European Way of Life” following criticism it had far-right connotations, an
EU official said Wednesday.
Ursula von der Leyen agreed to modify the title to “Promoting the European
Way of Life” for the commissioner, her spokesman told AFP. Her commission
plans to take charge from next month.
The original name given to the portfolio had brewed up a storm, especially
among left-wing MEPs who noted a similarity to rhetoric employed by anti-
immigration politicians.
Outgoing Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said in September he
believed the title would end up being changed, adding: “I don’t like the idea
that the European way of life is opposed to migration.”
But his successor von der Leyen dug in for a long time, arguing that the
title was grounded in the language of tolerance enshrined in the EU treaty.
Greece’s Margaritis Schinas, who is set to take on the role, has avoided
using the title though he has defended von der Leyen’s position.
– Delayed changeover –
Von der Leyen’s hopes of a smooth transition have taken a blow after MEPs
blocked three picks for her team, deeming them unsuitable to become
commissioners.
That has pushed back the date she hoped her Commission would take over,
from November 1 to December 1 at the earliest.
Brexit turmoil and elections in Britain, still an EU member until at least
the end of January, have compounded the commission conundrum, with London
dodging her demands for the UK to also nominate a commissioner.
Von der Leyen still needs MEPs to confirm her replacement picks for
commissioners, especially France’s Thierry Breton, a multi-millionaire former
minister who barely scraped through the parliament’s legal affairs grilling.
The leftist Socialists and Democrats grouping in the European Parliament,
which was among the most vocal against the “Protecting our European Way of
Life” title, hailed the belated change.
Its leader, Iratxe Garcia, portrayed the modification as von der Leyen
bending to pressure from her group.
“We all agree that the European way of life is an achievement we must
preserve, but it doesn’t have to be defended, rather promoted,” Garcia said
in a statement.
She added that von der Leyen had also agreed to change other job titles,
with the jobs portfolio becoming “jobs and social rights” and the word
fisheries being added to the title carried by the commissioner for
environment and oceans.
A source in the left-wing bloc of MEPs told AFP the changes “take a bit of
pressure off” the hearings for the commissioner candidates.
A spokesman for von der Leyen’s commission, Eric Mamer, told reporters at a
briefing that he was not yet fully informed on the change of titles for the
migration portfolio, but he said it “puts a nuance that is probably a little
more positive” than the original one.
BSS/AFP/SSS/1916 hrs