Information for the media: hearing candidates for the post of commissioner | True

A detailed schedule of hearings is available here. The written questions prepared by the various committees are available together with the responses of the candidates for the post of commissioner here.

Meeting rooms

The hearing will be held in 2Q2. in space and 4Q2. room in the ANTALL building of the European Parliament in Brussels, and two hearings will be held at the same time (no more than six hearings in one day).

The last row of seats in the individual rooms will be reserved for the media. However, seats are not reserved and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Journalists are strongly advised to arrive early as there is no guarantee that seats will be available once the hearing has already started. Those who wish to leave the room before the end of the hearing are asked to do so quietly by exiting through the back door.

Online media and streaming services

Parliament’s press service will publish a reminder of the day’s scheduled hearings in EP Today each morning, as well as a press release shortly after each meeting.

All hearings are public and can be watched live. Meetings can be viewed here on “EP Live” and “EbS/EbS+“

The Parliament Multimedia Center offers full definition video as well as high definition pictures in ‘media packs’ for for every hearing and each individual commissioner candidate.

High definition videos will be available for download within 30 minutes of the start of the meeting (live replay). A selection of high resolution images will also be available for download.

In the field of media (Karamanlis pedestrian bridge) it is possible to provide the link for live broadcasts. To ensure your place in this field, you must apply to [email protected].

Each meeting room will have an area at the back for videographers and photojournalists, where the necessary signal for live broadcasting will be available.

Credit and access

Special accreditation is not required for audition appointments. Journalists who have received permission from the EU institutions or who have received annual permission from Parliament can enter the Parliament building in the normal way.

The entrance to the ANTALL building, where the hearing will be held, will be open until 22.30 Main entrance to the Parliament from rue Wiertz parties are open 24/7. The parking lot will also be open 24 hours a day, where a specific number of parking spaces will be reserved for media representatives who arrive by car. Please note that parking must be booked in advance in the app “IZIX“.

The cafeteria with snacks and refreshing drinks in the ANTALL building will be open from 8:00 am to 10:30 pm (from Monday, November 4 to Wednesday, November 6 and Tuesday, November 12). On Thursday, November 7, the cafe will be open from 8:00 am to 6:30 pm. The cafe in the SPINELLI building will be open until midnight (from Monday, November 4 to Wednesday, November 6 and Tuesday, November 12).

To get directly to the hearing meeting, it is recommended to use the entrance to the ANTALL building, which gives direct access to the meeting rooms. Also, the entrance to the SPAAK Parliament building will be open to media/visitors throughout the week.

If there is no approval, an application for short-term credit must be made to Parliament on the registration site. Permits can be obtained at the Media Accreditation Office in the building of the General Accreditation Center “Altiero Spinelli” (Esplanade Solidarity) 01F035. in the room.

Working hours of the Accreditation Office during the hearing meetings:

From Monday (November 4) to Thursday (November 7) – at 8.00 – 20.00

Friday (November 8) – at 8:30 am – 1:00 pm

Monday (November 11) – at 8.30 – 17.45

Tuesday (November 12) – at 8.00 – 19.00

Procedures for hearing meetings

Each hearing lasts three hours. First, the candidate for the position of commissioner will make a 15-minute speech, and then the members will ask questions. Each political group will divide the time between the Members attending the hearing. An applicant for the post of commissioner will have twice as much time to answer as is allotted to ask a question. Before the end of the hearing, the appointed commissioner may give a short closing speech.

Depending on the possible mandate, the candidate/candidates for the position of commissioner may be evaluated by one committee or by several committees together. Other committees may be invited to the hearing and may ask oral questions, but the final assessment of the candidates rests with the committee/coordinators of the responsible committees.

Hearing assessment

Immediately after the hearing, the chairs of one or more of the relevant committees and the representatives of the political groups (coordinators) will meet together to assess whether the candidates for the position of commissioner have the necessary qualifications to be appointed as a commissioner . and perform the specific duties assigned to them.

Once the evaluation is complete, the coordinators will send a confidential letter of recommendation within 24 hours to be evaluated by the Conference of Committee Chairs and then forwarded to the Conference of Presidents.

Committee coordinators can decide unanimously to approve (or reject) a candidate for the position of commissioner. If there is a difference of opinion, coordinators representing at least two thirds of the number of committee members must support the decision.

If the coordinators do not achieve the two-thirds majority required to approve (or reject) the applicant, they may request additional information by asking more written questions and/or opening the hearing meeting again (for 1.5 hours and with the permission of the Conference of Presidents) to clarify questions. If one of these two options is not supported by a simple majority of coordinators, the Chair/Committee Chair will call a Committee meeting to vote on the nominee’s approval (closed meeting by secret ballot, where a majority vote is required -simple part).

After additional written questions have been submitted and/or the hearing has resumed, the coordinators will confirm the Commissioner candidate(s) by a majority of at least two-thirds, or, failing that, the Chairman/Chairperson of a committee will call a meeting and hold a secret ballot for the candidate(s).

Results and closure of all hearings

As soon as all the hearings are over, the Conference of Committee Chairs will evaluate the results of all these hearings and send its decisions to the Conference of Presidents. Once the Conference of Presidents has considered the evaluation reports submitted by the responsible committees and the proposal from the Conference of Committee Chairs, it will adopt a final evaluation and submit announced that the hearing will close on November 21. As soon as the Conference of Presidents announces that the hearing is closed, the evaluation notices will be published.

The next steps – Election of the Commission in full session

After the hearing is over, the new President of the Commission, Urzula von der Leyen, will present the full text of the Board of Commissioners and the work program at the plenary session, followed by a discussion with the MPs. Any political group or at least one-twentieth of Members of Parliament (at least mandatory minimum) can submit a motion for a resolution.

The members of the Commission must be approved by the Parliament as a whole (with a majority of the votes cast, voting according to the list). Voting is currently scheduled for the 25th-28th. at the November plenary session in Strasbourg.

Once Parliament has approved the members of the Commission, the College of Commissioners is formally appointed by the European Council with a qualified majority.