EU Commission presidency

Commenting on the election of Jean-Claude Juncker as President of the European Commission, Greens/EFA co-presidents Rebecca Harms and Philippe Lamberts stated:

"We would like to congratulate Jean-Claude Juncker on his election as President of the European Commission. With his clear pro-European profile, we hope he will take up the challenge of creating a more fair, sustainable and democratic European Union. We hope he will be a strong, independent president, who will work closely with the European Parliament, the EU's only direct-elected institution.

"While the Greens/EFA group supported the 'spitzenkandidat' process as a major step forward for European democracy and the role of the European Parliament, a majority in our group was not convinced by Mr Juncker's political priorities and the willingness of the 'big coalition' to make the changes that Europe needs. There were particular concerns regarding his vision on climate and energy policy, the TTIP EU-US trade negotiations, migration and taxation policy. However, our group welcomed the important steps he is prepared to take on reforming the EU's role with regard to GMOs, shale gas and fracking, and lobbying transparency.

"The appointment of the Commission College is the next crucial landmark and our group will closely scrutinise this. How and to whom the diverse policy portfolios are allocated will give a signal of the political direction in which Commission president Juncker wants to go. Ensuring gender balance must also be a priority. Our group will remain open to working with President Juncker on any initiative he and his Commission proposes to create a more fair, sustainable and democratic EU."