President balances EU commission roles

By Oana Lungescu BBC Brussels correspondent

The incoming president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Durao Barroso, has unveiled the line-up for the European Union's next executive, due to take office on 1 November.

By ending speculation over which countries would get the top jobs earlier than expected, Mr Durao Barroso aims to show leadership at a crucial juncture in the history of the EU.

Mr Durao Barroso wants a better understanding of Europe

The next five years will show whether the EU can work with 25 and more members, and how much economic and political weight it can pull on the world stage.

So the European Commission - which initiates EU laws and monitors their implementation - will play a crucial role.

Much will depend on whether its incoming president can balance the demands of the big EU countries (such as Germany, France and Britain) with those of the smaller ones, which now represent the majority in the club.

Each country appoints one European commissioner, but once they take up their job, the commissioners are supposed to represent Europe as a whole, not narrow national interests.

Mr Durao Barroso said this could be done - and he stressed he had been under no pressure from EU leaders.

So the top jobs, those connected with money, will go to a mixture of big and small countries, old and new members.

• Germany's Guenter Verheugen - enterprise and industry
• The UK's Peter Mandelson - trade
• Italy's Rocco Buttiglione - justice, freedom and security
• Poland's Danuta Huebner - regional policy
• The Netherlands' Nellie Kroes-Smit - competition
• Ireland's Charlie McCreevy - internal market.

Mr Durao Barroso says the main priority of his European Commission will be to "make Europe understood by our citizens regarding three main objectives: prosperity, solidarity and security".

"I personally will make my first priority the process of reform in Europe," he said.

"We have to go ahead with reforms in Europe. Now we have globalisation, our citizens are concerned about the consequences of that globalisation, about delocalisation, disindustrialisation, and I think it is important that we make reforms."

Mr Durao Barroso will personally oversee reforms to make Europe the most competitive economy in the world by 2010, which have yielded very few results in the last five years.

But his team is short on EU political experience, with only the German, Swedish and Luxembourg commissioners staying on.

Good offer

The new commission does include three former prime ministers, five former foreign ministers and three finance ministers.

There are also more women than ever before - eight out of 25.

As for the age of the commissioners, I'm one of the youngest and I don't see that as a problem, not at all Jose Manuel Durao Barroso The new commissioners

Simon Taylor, an EU analyst, believes Mr Durao Barroso has made an impressive start, not least in the way he dealt with the new member states.

"He's made them a fairly reasonable offer," he said.

"It's good that there's one vice-president from the new member states - Mr Siim Kallas the former Estonian prime minister, who will also be in charge of administrative affairs and anti-fraud, deserves quite a high position because of his status.

"The Poles will probably be disappointed they didn't got a vice-president, but Mrs Huebner has got regional policy which is a substantial financial dossier.

"Some others have got small dossiers - Mr Borg from Malta has got fisheries, Mr Figl from Slovakia has got parts of education and culture, but at the end of the day they are small countries, they haven't necessarily sent their biggest political heavyweights, and it would have been surprising if they'd have been given the big sexy dossiers, if you like."

Young blood

The main priority of the previous European Commission was eastwards expansion, with one of its most experienced members, Mr Verheugen, in charge.

Now the youngest, Finland's Olli Rehn, 42, will take over enlargement and the Balkans. Does this mean a downgrading of enlargement? Mr Durao Barroso insists not.

"As for the age of the commissioners, I'm one of the youngest and I don't see that as a problem, not at all," he said.

"So it has to do with the specific background and interest. Mr Rehn is very motivated, I think he's very happy with that responsibility and I think he can do very well on enlargement and the Balkans.

"This is a priority, but now what we have in terms of enlargement first is Bulgaria and Romania, next Croatia, afterwards, let's see what is the proposal from the Prodi Commission regarding Turkey, and then of course we can consider other options. But it's true that now there is less work in terms of expansion negotiations than before, that's quite clear."

Mr Durao Barroso indicated that the European Commission would have to be reshuffled again in the next five years, with the entrance of Bulgaria and Romania, and perhaps Croatia.

And if the European Constitution is ratified, the EU's foreign affairs chief Javier Solana will also become vice-president of the commission in charge of foreign affairs.

He will also represent Spain, triggering the departure of Joaquin Almunia, who is currently in charge of economic and monetary affairs.

The new commissioners will have to go through confirmation hearings in the European Parliament in early October, before taking office on 1 November.