EU recruits to keep legislative wheels turning

Date: 29/04/04

Many observers believe that EU's decision-making will slow down radically, if not grind to a complete halt, from 1 May as the Union struggles to digest the ten new member states.

Yet even between those who are sceptical about enlargement, there is consensus that success or failure will depend very much on the calibre of new officials recruited into the institutions.

One European Commission official who has worked closely on enlargement explains: "The candidates [new member states] have to realize they should send good people to the key committees and key positions, directors-general, etc. If they send politically agreeable people, but who are not effective, they will burn their cards."

It is an argument that is endorsed at the highest levels of the Commission. So much so, in fact, that Romano Prodi's administration has committed itself to a bold programme of bringing in new blood from the acceding states after 1 May, even at the risk of provoking some resentment within its current ranks.

This Commission will be recruiting nearly 3,500 officials from the new member states, including eight jobs at the highest level of A1, normally directors-general, and 83 at middle management level. The number of A1 posts exceeds the number signed off by the European Parliament, which agreed to fund five new A1 positions in the budget.

Compared to previous enlargements, the Commission is keen to bring in new officials as soon as possible.

European Commission Vice-President Neil Kinnock's spokesman, Eric Mamer, says that the haste to bring in new staff is justified by the challenges presented by this enlargement.

"It's a new Union from the first of May. You will have many new countries, which will have a significant impact on the workload. Therefore, it's important to have people who know how the new countries work."

Mamer rejects suggestions that standards will be lowered by taking in people who do not have long experience of how the EU functions.

"If people think the new staff will not be of the same quality as their counterparts, they're in for a big surprise," he says.

Nevertheless, the scale of the recruitment drive has caused some unease within the Commission, with ambitious staff complaining that promotions will be frozen for many years while the newcomers are accommodated.

But this view is contested by the current administration. "We're creating as many new posts as there are people coming in," argues Mamer.

But what of the human aspect of the arrival of the newcomers? What problems and challenges do they face?

Ramunas Freigofas is a Lithuanian veterinary expert working in the directorate general for health and consumer safety. An expert in pig immunology, he studied in Germany and the UK before coming to Brussels in September 2003 to work on the legislation covering the trade in animals within the Community.

Freigofas speaks positively about his experience, praising the friendliness and spirit of cooperation of his colleagues.

Compared to a small country like Lithuania, he points out, decisions in Brussels are taken much more slowly, not least because of the need to take into account the views of the Parliament and the member states.

While Freigofas likes Brussels and its cultural life and international character, he strikes a familiar note about the slowness of some Belgian ways. Citing delays in getting a phone line and connecting up to the gas and electricity supplies, he says: "Service is much better in Lithuania."

With his family still based in Lithuania, the veterinary expert doubts whether he will stay in Brussels despite his job satisfaction and has not yet decided whether to sit a concours for a permanent position.

Unlike her Lithuanian counterpart, Polish lawyer Anita Wieja's position in the Commission has nothing to do with her national government.

A law graduate from the University of Katowice, Wieja is currently working on state aid in DG Agriculture after graduating from the College of Europe of Bruges, which she attended on a scholarship from US law firm Baker & McKenzie for whom she worked in Poland.

Fluent in French and English, and with very good knowledge of Italian and Czech, Wieja also enjoys her job within the institutions.

"I find it very pleasant, even though sometimes it's a bit stressful, because it's a huge responsibility," she says.

Wieja is keen to remain in the Commission, despite recently failing the first part of her concours - the verbal and arithmetical reasoning which, she claims, were designed to weed out as many applicants as possible.

Undeterred, she says she will probably try and sit later exams for higher grade posts which are due to be held next year.

It should not surprize anyone that experts from the new member states with experience of working in an international environment and a long-standing knowledge of how the EU works should quickly feel at home within the institutions.

But the test of the next few years will be to see if the incoming ten states' arrival learn quickly enough how to play the institutional game to their best advantage.

Article argues that the calibre of officials from the new Member States in the institutions will be critical to avoid gridlock. Article is part of a European Voice Special Report on EU Enlargement.