Brown backs Barroso for 2nd term

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has backed Jose Manuel Barroso for a second five-year term as head of the European Commission. The Commission plays a key role coordinating EU policy, including trade and competition.

The Portuguese free marketeer and former prime minister got the job leading the 27-nation EU executive body in 2004, and is hoping to stay on.

Brown said of Barroso: “He has done an excellent job as president of the European Commission, he has been building a stronger, fairer and more prosperous Europe. He has led the way on climate change, and he has been building consensus among European leaders on the challenges that face us collectively.”

Brown’s endorsement of Barroso in London comes two weeks after an emergency economic summit at which French President Nicolas Sarkozy held back.
He said it would be better to leave the decision on the commission chair until after the second Irish referendum on the Lisbon reform Treaty this autumn.

There are procedures and political plays involved with an eye to other important jobs too. Prime minister François Fillion is one of Barroso’s possible French challengers. In reaching a consensus among all the member states, powerful Germany’s preference must be taken into account.

With elections for the European Parliament due in June, the assembly has also raised questions about when to appoint the commission president — just after those elections or later, citing current Nice Treaty rules, and consideration of reforms set out in the Lisbon Treaty.

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tags: EU Commission