Might Cameron reconsider Hill appointment?
Jonathan Lindsell, 26 August 2014
The new European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, has indicated that he won’t give Lord Hill of Oareford an important portfolio in the next Commission. The Daily Telegraph reported yesterday that Juncker repeatedly urged all EU member states to nominate women since a repeat of the gender imbalance of the last executive, 9:19, would be ‘neither legitimate nor credible’.
Jonathan Hill, who had been Leader of the House of Lords, was a surprise nomination as Britain’s Commissioner. Many had expected the Prime Minister to propose a candidate who had held a senior ministerial post like Andrew Lansley or Michael Howard. Hill, a former public relations consultant, was chosen as a deal-broker and conciliator for the Conservatives’ EU renegotiation goals.
Britain needs to control an important economic post in the Commission, such as ‘internal market and services’, ‘economic and monetary affairs’, ‘competition’ or ‘trade’. However Juncker has implied that Britain will get a less prominent role since only those with senior ministerial experience or women would have ‘a very good chance’ to rise to the top or land ‘one of the most sought-after posts of vice president’.
Juncker’s comments were not specifically directed at Britain, despite the public discord Britain and Brussels had over the Luxembourger’s premiership. The EU’s other large countries also nominated men – Günther Oettinger for Germany, Pierre Moscovici for France, Radosław Sikorski for Poland and Miguel Arias Cañete for Spain. Four other members sent former heads of state. Indeed the only large country to nominate a woman has been Italy, sending foreign minister Federica Mogherini. Currently only four women have been nominated, the others from Bulgaria, Sweden and the Czech Republic, although five countries are yet to announce their representatives.
Europe’s leaders meet in Brussels this weekend to discuss the composition of the Juncker Commission. Juncker’s comments and the backlash of British, French and German commentators reveals a complex tension between member states’ right to self-determination and the EU’s lasting commitment to gender equality. Juncker has a point – he may well be accused of leading an executive that is ‘less legitimate and hardly representative’ if only 14% of his team are women. This is why he is ‘continuing to insist’ women are sent and feels a ‘need to redress the balance through portfolio allocation.’
The entire Commission must win support from the European Parliament before it takes power on 1 November. However yesterday the leader of the Liberals and Democrats group, Guy Verhofstadt, announced ‘The commission that is in the pipeline for the moment is simply not acceptable to us’, indicating his 85 votes would go against Junker along with those of most Eurosceptics. ‘Let there be little doubt that such a skewed commission will not find a majority in the European Parliament and will simply be rejected’.
There was speculation that Hill was appointed to snub the entire Brussels machine. This might have been achieved, but bodes poorly for Britain’s wider renegotiation ambitions. As the Dutch and Belgians consider recalling their men, could Cameron appoint a woman after all?