Barroso steps up pace to prepare for leadership

By Martin Banks

Date: 09/09/04

JOSE Manuel Barroso, president-in-waiting of the European Commission, has embarked on a series of meetings in preparation for taking charge of the EU executive.

After a week-long holiday in Greece, Barroso began this week getting to know some of the important people and constituencies with whom he must work once he takes office on 1 November.

He is currently operating from an office on the 11th floor of the Commission's Breydel building, a floor below the outgoing President, Romano Prodi.

A Commission spokesman said that Barroso wanted to exchange views with social partners and representatives of civil society.

"This week's meetings have been very useful and there will be more in coming weeks. He considers it important that such people get the chance to fully air their views with him before he takes up office in the Autumn," a Commission spokesman said.

Barroso's first meeting on Monday (6 September) was with the Luxembourg premier, Jean-Claude Juncker, the man whose refusal to take the presidency of the Commission opened up the way for the Portuguese.

Officially, the main topic of conversation was the Luxembourg presidency of the EU in the first half of 2005, which takes on added significance as it will be the first complete one under a Barroso Commission.

Juncker is tipped to become the voice of the eurozone finance ministers, nicknamed Mr Eurogroup, a development which will be advanced this Autumn and will have given extra importance to their discussion of the Commission's planned reform of the Growth and Stability Pact, the upcoming EU budget and the Lisbon Agenda of economic reform.

The two men also discussed Turkey's accession to the EU, which will have to be dealt with by the European Council in December.

If EU leaders give the green light for accession negotiations, these will begin during Luxembourg's six-month period in office.

On Tuesday, Barroso held meetings with Jim Murray, of BEUC, the Brussels-based federation of consumers' organizations, as well as with representatives from farming unions.

Yesterday (Wednesday), Barroso met Peter Medgyessy, the outgoing Hungarian prime minister.

Today (9 September) he will hold talks with the social partners: with John Monks, of the European Trade Union Confederation, and Jürgen Strube, of Unice, the employers' federation.

Barroso is also preparing for the second get-together of his College of commissioners, to take place at the end of next week in Leuven.

While the first session, in Brussels on 20 August, was seen as an opportunity for "team building", the second meeting, on 17-18 September, will concentrate on detailed preparations for the imminent confirmation hearings for commissioners, to be held at the European Parliament.

The two-week hearings start on 27 September - prior to a vote by the whole Parliament - and, although Barroso will not have to appear, some MEPs are aiming to give his team a grilling.

Barroso has moved into a house in the European quarter, close to both the Breydel and Berlaymont, the Commission's newly refurbished headquarters.

Jose Manuel Barroso has started meeting key actors as a preparation for his taking office as President of the European Commission on 1 November 2004.