Barroso in countdown for possible second nomination

Barroso in countdown for possible second nomination

The 53-year-old Portuguese centre-right politician took office in 2004 (Photo: European Commission)

HONOR MAHONY, 25.05.2009, EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Jose Manuel Barroso looks set for another term as European Commission chief even as he has faced a storm of criticism for his handling of the current economic crisis and being in thrall to Paris and Berlin – condemnation that some analysts say is unfair.

The 53-year old centre-right politician came to the office in 2004 on a sour note, having emerged as compromise candidate only at the 11th hour and only grudgingly supported by France and Germany.

His hosting of the Azores Summit – for supporters of the war in Iraq – in March 2003 was immediately given an unflattering rake-over at a time when the launch of the unpopular war was still fresh in the public mind.

He then bungled what could have been a relatively straightforward first encounter with the European Parliament by misjudging the mood of MEPs over an Italian commissioner nominee whom they felt was unsuitable. As the drama unfolded, a small rebellion turned into outright mutiny that threatened to sink the Barroso commission before it even began.

This tainted beginning robbed the former Portuguese prime minister of any honeymoon period he might have had by virtue of being a fresh face and able to communicate well and in several languages – something that could not be said of his immediate predecessor.

Pragmatic

But still Mr Barroso moved to quickly establish himself as a pragmatic operator, aware that the heady days of a big bang enlargement and the euro adoption of the past commission would necessarily have to be replaced by less glitzy projects.

He said his commission would be about growth and jobs. But in effect, he attached himself to an issue – the Lisbon Strategy on economic growth – over which the commission has little clout. The Lisbon Strategy lives and dies with the political will of the member states and has now come to represent a litany of failed targets and missed deadlines. Mr Barroso can do little to change this.

His second policy choice, energy and climate change, was cannier. The Portuguese harnessed the issue and put the commission to work on the tough dossier. Environment NGOs were quick to question whether this came from personal conviction on the matter, noting that he continued to drive a gas-guzzling SUV. But the end result was an agreement in 2007 by EU leaders to reduce CO2 emissions by 20 percent by 2020.

Presidential style

Inside the commission, the former prime minister radically changed the way the college worked. Faced with a gaggle of 26 commissioners, each with their own policy areas and potential fiefdoms, Mr Barroso quickly stamped a presidential style on the institution.

A former senior official remarked that the only way of getting something done in the commission is to go directly to the president and get his approval. This contrasts strongly with Romano Prodi's more collegial style. A telling commissioner group photo at the entrance of the institution's headquarters in Brussels gives prominence to Mr Barroso.

Publicly, this has meant the commission president has shared the limelight with the responsible commissioners for all big policy initiatives, announcing the broadstroke changes brought by an initiative at press conferences while leaving his colleague to deal with the details. Some commissioners, such as Margot Wallstrom in charge of communication, have been all but absent as a result.

One EU official remarked that he does not like commissioners to go "off message."

Although his mandate has been dogged continually by calls from the left that the commission is pursuing a "neo-liberal" agenda, the most sustained and virulent criticism of Mr Barroso concerns his handling of the current economic crisis.

Economic crisis

It is widely agreed that the commission was slow to react, letting member states run loose with talk of protectionist measures and failing to direct the debate on how to respond to the crisis. When it did eventually come with policies, they were considered not ambitious enough or even inadequate.

Centre-right French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he was proposing initiatives because the commission was not, former Belgian Prime Minister Verhofstadt, a liberal, said the institution lacked vision, while Socialists in the European Parliament accused him of sticking too rigidly to an ideology that they said brought about the economic crisis in the first place.

This criticism, talk of his being too subservient to big member states and of weakening the commission has crystalised over the past weeks.

Recently, the Financial Times newspaper, a bible among EU policy-makers and the Brussels elite, carried an opinion piece in which the author said: "Mr Barroso is among the weakest Commission presidents ever, a vain man who lacks political courage."

Other analysts feel he is being unfairly judged, however. Antonio Missiroli from the European Policy Centre points out that Mr Barroso "had to operate in a very difficult situation."

He said that while Frenchman Jacques Delors is often hailed as one of the greatest commission presidents, he "enjoyed a more favourable general climate."

Previous commissions did not have to deal with the worst economic crisis in recent memory, three referendums rejecting further EU integration and no particular identifiable headline project such as enlargement.

While noting that Mr Barroso "managed somehow to preserve the institution from the shockwaves of the referendums" Mr Missiroli agreed that the commission has been weakened under Mr Barroso's watch but suggested this was rather due to parliament and member states being more assertive.

This has reduced the commission's role to a "promoter" of EU legislation and then a "mediator," as MEPs and governments seek to change the draft law.

Piotr Kaczynski, from the Centre for European Policy Studies, said it is important "to look at who is doing the criticising." He suggested that France, although carping about the commission's performance, "does not actually want it to be a stronger institution."

A second Barroso term?

With the backing of the European People's Party and several governments, including a sprinkling of centre-left ones, Mr Barroso has for long looked like a shoo-in for a second term, with the issue likely to be decided at a summit in just under a month's time.

One commission official remarked that it has been "a very long election campaign." This has led to repeated charges that he is avoiding doing anything that will upset Paris and Berlin.

However, the Centre for European Reform's Hugo Brady says it is still too early say whether he will make it in for another five year stint, noting that other names such as Dutch leader Jan-Peter Balkenende have also been mentioned as possible candidates for the job.

Additionally, Mr Brady reckons there has been "plenty of conflict" with Berlin and Paris over the past few years, but Mr Barroso "does not allow it to emerge in the media."

In a sign that Mr Barroso feels he may have been a little too gung ho about retaining his post, he gave an interview to several newspapers on 20 May stressing that it would be better for "institutional stability" if the nomination is agreed by EU leaders in June.

Waiting until November, when the Lisbon Treaty may be in force as France has suggested, would likely lessen his chances of being re-elected as other posts will also be up for consideration. The Lisbon Treaty also gives the European Parliament, busy trying to put together a red-green coalition against Mr Barroso, a stronger say over the nomination.

But while Mr Barroso's critics says the answer to the economic crisis, to unruly member states, and to the current sense of a floundering EU would be to have the commission run by an ambitious and integration-minded political leader, others say no one in Europe fits the bill.

A different commission chief "could end up being worse" says Mr Missiroli, while the institution might benefit from having an "experienced president" who already knows the "tricks" of Brussels.

According to Mr Brady, the commission chief should "give up trying to be liked" and, if he wins a second mandate, he should concentrate on "economic and regulatory" briefs.

In any case, a second Barroso commission, possibly operating under the new Lisbon Treaty and eventually even bigger, will look very different to the current one.

It will probably have "clusters of commissioners" covering separate areas, such as justice and home affairs, says Mr Brady, who recommends that Mr Barroso, if chosen again, recruits a strong "bully boy" or "chief whip" to help him run a tight ship.