Ursula von der Leyen has unveiled her new European Commission, pledging to make the continent “stronger”.
But her announcement has coincided with massive protests in Brussels, somewhat distracting from the message of unity the EU’s top official doubtless wanted to project.
And Ms von der Leyne has also failed to achieve her stated aim of a gender-balanced commission, with 60 percent of appointees being men.
Top names who have been reappointed include Maros Sefcovoic and Valdis Dombrovkis – but France‘s Thierry Breton, who quit yesterday., has been replaced by Stephane Sejourne, who takes the portfolio of Prosperity and Industrial Strategy.
Sharing a list of her new commissioners, Ms von der Leyen said: “Every member of my team will bring in their own experience and perspectives on Europe.
“Together, we will be one team, working towards one common goal. To make Europe stronger.”
Despite the failure to get a 50/50 split, Von der Leyen put six women among the eight top positions in her team. She and foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas were already agreed on by government leaders, but she added Spanish Socialist Teresa Ribero to lead the green transition on top of becoming the competition and anti-trust czar. Three other women were also named as vice presidents.
Simultaneously, thousands of frustrated workers rallied in the Belgian capital, Brussels, to protest the looming threat of massive layoffs at a cutting-edge car factory.
This factory, a key symbol of critical industries across the European Union, has become a focal point in the call for increased government support amid growing global competition.
The protest, which police estimated to number around 5,500 participants, was sparked by German automaker Audi’s announcement that it would phase out production at its Forest plant in southern Brussels.
This move endangers the jobs of 3,000 employees, many of whom specialise in electric vehicle production – a sector the EU is eager to promote as it competes with China and the United States.
Salvatore Tabone, a 27-year Audi veteran facing potential job loss, expressed his frustration: “What’s happening at Audi could happen at other factories too. We need to act to ensure that industries remain. After all the efforts we’ve made, this is the reward we get.”
ACV union representative Lieve De Preter highlighted that this situation is part of a broader issue affecting major industries throughout Belgium: “This is not an isolated case. We’ve seen a wave of similar problems over the past year.”
A recent EU-requested report indicated that the economies of the 27-nation EU would require up to 800 billion euros (nearly $900 billion) to effectively transition to clean energy and enhance global competitiveness. The EU has struggled with weaker growth compared to the US, widening the transatlantic industrial gap.
The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) pointed out that the decision to phase out production at Audi is part of a troubling trend, with Europe losing 850,000 industrial jobs between 2019 and 2023. ETUC General Secretary Esther Lynch emphasised that the threat to thousands of jobs near the European institutions should underscore the need for EU leaders to improve support for industries.
