MEPs poised to decide fate of Fitto, Ribera and other commissioners
Evening meeting is the strongest sign yet that a political deal to unblock the start of the European Commission is within reach.
BRUSSELS — After a long delay, members of the European Parliament will meet at 7 p.m. to decide whether to green-light the seven pending commissioner nominees.
Those nominees include Italy’s right-wing candidate, Raffaele Fitto, whose fate is tied to a tit-for-tat over that of the Socialists’ top pick, Teresa Ribera of Spain. The group also includes Hungary’s controversial candidate, Olivér Varhélyi, nominated by the country’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
The deadlock has threatened to delay the start of the new European Commission, led by President Ursula von der Leyen, beyond Dec. 1.
The fact that the coordinators of the political groups are being instructed to meet is a strong signal that a deal to unblock the deadlock is in the offing. However, senior lawmakers such as Manfred Weber, Iratxe García and Valérie Hayer smiled and remained tight-lipped when entering a closed-door meeting in the Parliament this afternoon, refusing to confirm if they had reached a deal.
Fitto was nominated by Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and would oversee policy areas such as agriculture and transport. Ribera would hold arguably the second-largest portfolio, covering competition and climate policy.
The meeting comes eight days after Fitto and others faced questions from lawmakers in hearings in the Parliament over their suitability to serve as European commissioners for five-year terms.
MEPs as a whole will need to vote on whether to endorse all 27 commissioners. That ballot is penciled in for Nov. 27 in Strasbourg.
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