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Brussels – AGERPRES special correspondent, Tudor Martalogu, reports: The European Parliament organized this week the hearings of 20 designated European commissioners, during which time the Members of the European Parliament examined to what extent the future members of the College of Commissioners possess the necessary competences to ensure the portfolios entrusted by the president of the future European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
The majority of the commissioners heard starting Monday did not face notable difficulties during the confirmation hearings.
However, the designated European commissioner from Hungary, Oliver Varhelyi, who was entrusted with the portfolio of public health and animal welfare, has not yet obtained the approval of the MEPs at the end of the hearing held on Wednesday evening, as he will need to answer additional questions in writing.
For more than three hours, Varhelyi’s hearing, a close associate of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, was mainly marked by questions from center and left-wing MEPs concerning the right to abortion and reproductive health.
Oliver Varhelyi assured that he defends women’s rights, however, stressed several times that abortion is not an ”EU competence”, but is at the discretion of member states.
According to an announcement made Thursday morning by the EP spokesperson, Delphine Colard, the coordinators of the groups in the environment and agriculture committees of the European Parliament decided to address additional questions to Oliver Varhelyi, which is part of the hearing procedure of the designated European commissioners.
After receiving the questions, the designated European commissioner for health and animal welfare has 24 hours to respond. On Monday, November 11, the environment (ENVI) and agriculture and rural development (AGRI) committees of the European Parliament will meet again to assess the responses.
According to the schedule announced by the EP, the hearings of the designated commissioners will end on November 12, a day on which the six executive vice-presidents of the future Commission, including Romanian Roxana Mînzatu, who will deal with the portfolio ‘People, skills, and training’, will have to answer questions.
After all the hearings are completed, the Conference of Committee Chairs will assess the results and send the conclusions to the Conference of Presidents (consisting of EP President Roberta Metsola and political group leaders). The Conference of Presidents will analyze the evaluation letters received from the competent committees and the recommendations of the Conference of Committee Chairs. It will then make a final assessment, and on November 21, will declare the hearings closed. Evaluation letters will be published after the Conference of Presidents declares all hearings closed.(8.11.2024)
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