Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Luc Frieden (CSV-EPP) picked centre-right MEP Christophe Hansen as Commissioner over the EU socialists’ lead candidate for the EU Commission presidency, Nicolas Schmit.
The current Jobs and Social Rights Commissioner, one of the very few heavyweight Socialists in Europe, will have to step down from his position and leave the post to Christophe Hansen, the Prime minister announced on Thursday (22 August), with no mention of the required female candidate.
Hansen, a senior centre-right politician from Luxembourg, was the leading candidate for the Christian Social People’s Party (CSV-EPP) in June’s European elections and is from the same party as the country’s prime minister. Throughout his parliamentary career, he has largely focused on trade affairs. He has been elected to the European Parliament three times, where he has notably been a rapporteur on the Brexit trade deal and deforestation files.
Like all nominated Commissioners, he must be given a portfolio and pass a hearing in front of the European Parliament in the autumn, to be officially appointed as the Luxembourgish member of the college of Commissioners.
The nomination is a significant blow to the Socialists, as Nicolas Schmit, a seasoned European Commissioner, and a lead candidate for Commission president during the European Elections, had a compelling case for his re-appointment, despite the Luxembourgish government being centre-right.
The socialist political family is set to be one representative short in the next college of Commissioners. Currently they only govern in four EU countries, with Germany represented at the EU by centre-right Ursula von der Leyen, tipping the balance in favour of the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP).
Schmit had argued in Euractiv during the spring, that the EPP should give an extra commissioner post to the Socialists,
German SPD member of the European Parliament (MEP) René Repasi told Euractiv, that the decision was “totally wrong”, and Luxembourg should have followed the Dutch example in 2019.
The EU socialists’ Spitzenkandidat Frans Timmermans was defeated in the EU elections but was nominated as Commissioner by the then liberal-led Dutch government.
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