site.btaUPDATED PM Glavchev: Next Government Should Nominate New EU Commissioner

The next government should nominate a new EU Commissioner, caretaker Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dimitar Glavchev said on Thursday at a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of the European Funds in connection with a procedure for the preparation of proposals for a EU Commissioner.

Glavchev said that guided by the understanding that his caretaker Cabinet has very little time left he is of the opinion that unless the European Commission insists on the nomination of a new EU Commissioner, the caretaker government should not engage with actions in this direction, so that the next government can nominate candidates after consultations with the political forces in Parliament. He expressed hope that thus the government will have more clarity in order to take action. Glavchev said that the EU Commissioner nomination process is "specific". 

Glavchev noted that he had received a letter from EC President Ursula von der Leyen which states that Bulgaria has to present two nominations for an EU Commissioner, one of a woman and one of a man, by the end of August 2024. In his words, there is the option that only one candidate is nominated if that is Bulgaria's current EU Commissioner Iliana Ivanova. 

In August 2024, the Council of Ministers should adopt a decision to approve a candidate or candidates on behalf of Bulgaria for members of the EC. Bulgaria should send an official letter of nominations of candidates, together with their biographies or curriculum vitae by August 30, according to the letter. 

The caretaker prime minister noted that the procedure foresees that candidates be heard and the chair of the committee will seek approval for the line-up from the European Parliament. The final vote will take place at one of the plenary sessions of the European Parliament in October, Glavchev said of the procedure.

Asked whether he had participated in talks to discuss possible portfolios of the future Bulgarian EU commissioner, Glavchev said he had not. The prime minister assured the MPs on the Committee that he would inform them about whether there were any potential modifications to the process.