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Austria nominates Magnus Brunner as EU Commissioner

by AI | 31.Jul 2024 | Europe in brief AI

As expected, Austria nominates its Finance Minister Magnus Brunner to become the country’s next EU Commissioner. The government in Vienna announced this on Wednesday. The wish of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to nominate a woman and a man is therefore not being fulfilled.

Archive image - "I am very honored that the federal government is proposing me for the office of commissioner," Brunner said in a written statement. - Photo: APA/Roland Schlager

Vienna – Austria’s Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) is expected to become the next EU Commissioner for his country. After weeks of negotiations, the coalition of Conservatives and Greens in Vienna announced the agreement via broadcast on Wednesday. “Magnus Brunner knows the challenges at the European level and will ensure that both Austrian interests and European values are equally represented in the Commission,” said Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP).

“I am very honored that the federal government is proposing me for the office of Commissioner,” Brunner said in a written statement. Provided the decision in the main committee and a successful hearing, he looks forward to working on Ursula von der Leyen’s team for Europe. “The primary goal of the new Commission must be to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and maintain jobs and prosperity,” Brunner said. “A particularly export-oriented economy like Austria benefits greatly from this. We face many challenges to keep other regions of the world from overtaking us.”

The nomination had caused weeks of wrangling within the coalition. In early June, Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler (Greens) declared that he no longer felt bound by a former side agreement to the coalition agreement, according to which the ÖVP has the right to propose the next Commissioner. Nehammer, however, insisted on the agreement.

The 52-year-old Vorarlberg native Brunner has always had the best cards in the post-poker game. That he brings the necessary competencies for the post of EU Commissioner is undisputed. The eloquent, business-oriented politician, who also studied at King’s College London, has headed the Finance Ministry since December 2021.

The federal government has not complied with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s request that member states nominate both a man and a woman. Before the announcement of the agreement, Nehammer emphasized to the APA that the corresponding letter is an “option” for the Commission President to address the heads of government, “but it is not a mandatory provision”. (31.07.2024)