Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs.  GERMANY PUTS DEMANDS ON THE COMMISSION AMID CHAOS AT HOME One would think that German politicians would be too busy with domestic issues to make demands at EU level, given that the extreme-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) for the first time won the regional elections in Thuringia. Yet, the German coalition government made an effort to express discontent when German Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen nominated Italian far-right minister Raffaele Fitto as one of six future European Commission Executive Vice Presidents. At the same time, the German government saw no problem in joining Italy’s for a revision of the CO2 reduction targets for cars, and in requesting a six-month delay of the EU Deforestation regulation.  While Chancellor Scholz’s Sozialdemokratische Partei…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. NEW COLLEGE OF COMMISSIONERS PREPARES FOR THE GRILL A week later than planned, European Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen presented her team and their respective portfolios. Von der Leyen designated six Executive Vice-Presidents, four women and two men, potentially to reduce criticism on the lack of gender balance in the full college. The six Vice-President also seem to be more balanced than the overall college in terms of party affiliations, with two Socialists and Democrats, two liberals, one EPP and one European Conservatives and Reformists Vice-President. Due to changes in titles and roles, confusions and questions are bound to arise on the practical arrangements for certain Commissioners-designate. How will Belgium’s Hadja Lahbib, Commissioner-designate for Preparedness and Crisis Management and Equality,…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. DRAGHI'S MEGA-INVESTMENT PLAN TALK OF THE TOWN IN BRUSSELS Mario Draghi’s €800 billion investment plan, unveiled this Monday, has set off a storm of reactions across Europe. The former ECB chief is advocating for a hefty annual boost—equivalent to 4.4-4.7% of EU GDP—to tackle decarbonisation, digitalisation and defence. His aim: to help Europe catch up with other global heavyweights like China and the US. With no surprises, the centre-right side of the political spectrum has been quite satisfied with the report, praising it for its concrete pathways for solutions. Green advocates, on the other hand, raise serious concerns amid the already environmentally unfriendly political atmosphere. CAN Europe criticised the report for neglecting crucial elements and being too heavily focused on industrial…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. VDL ASSEMBLES HER NEW GENDER-IMBALANCED COLLEGE Not everyone relaxed during the annual summer break. Ursula von der Leyen, President-elect of the European Commission, has been busy asking Member States to put forward their candidates so she could assemble the European equivalent of Avengers – the College of Commissioners. Based on the proposed contenders, the incoming Commission is likely to be heavily EPP-  (>10 candidates) and men-biased (17 male Commissioners). The gender imbalance in particular may pose a problematic aspect as under their internal rules, MEPs are required to consider this in their scrutiny process. The Parliament votes on the College as a whole, after grilling each Commissioner-designate in a hearing organised by one or two relevant committees. The timeline for the…