The battle to choose the next head of the European Commission intensifies today when José Manuel Barroso will be nominated formally to keep the job, setting EU governments up in a straight fight with MEPs. Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Prime Minister of Sweden, which is holder of the rotating EU presidency, has been stung into action by the refusal of Socialist, Liberal and Green MEPs to hold a vote on a new term for Mr Barroso at next week's opening session of the European Parliament. He is understood to be annoyed that MEPs ignored his warning that blocking Mr Barroso would undermine the task of preparing a common EU position for climate change talks in Copenhagen in December. But an alliance of MEPs refused to be cajoled into an early vote and have demanded to see a programme of work from Mr Barroso for the next five years.
The battle to choose the next head of the European Commission intensifies today when José Manuel Barroso will be nominated formally to keep the job, setting EU governments up in a straight fight with MEPs.
Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Prime Minister of Sweden, which is holder of the rotating EU presidency, has been stung into action by the refusal of Socialist, Liberal and Green MEPs to hold a vote on a new term for Mr Barroso at next week's opening session of the European Parliament.
He is understood to be annoyed that MEPs ignored his warning that blocking Mr Barroso would undermine the task of preparing a common EU position for climate change talks in Copenhagen in December.
But an alliance of MEPs refused to be cajoled into an early vote and have demanded to see a programme of work from Mr Barroso for the next five years.
Jose Manuel Barroso, the current European Commission president, has received the official backing of the European Union to serve a second five-year term, the EU's Swedish presidency said. "We now have a unanimous formal nomination on Jose Manuel Barroso from all the heads of state and government," said Swedish Prime Minister Fredrick Reinfeldt, whose country currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. "The [EU] council has now taken its responsibility to finalize the nomination of the commission president," he said in a statement. "Hopefully we will be able to, as soon as possible, move Europe to solve the important tasks ahead of us such as the climate and financial crisis," he added. The decision to nominate Barroso, coming after a so-called "silence procedure" over 48 hours during which none of the 27 member nations objected, formalizes a political agreement reached at a summit on June 18-19.
"We now have a unanimous formal nomination on Jose Manuel Barroso from all the heads of state and government," said Swedish Prime Minister Fredrick Reinfeldt, whose country currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. "The [EU] council has now taken its responsibility to finalize the nomination of the commission president," he said in a statement.
"Hopefully we will be able to, as soon as possible, move Europe to solve the important tasks ahead of us such as the climate and financial crisis," he added.
The decision to nominate Barroso, coming after a so-called "silence procedure" over 48 hours during which none of the 27 member nations objected, formalizes a political agreement reached at a summit on June 18-19.
