What is the new recipe for MEPs grilling European Commissioners?

The dates for the commissioners-designate’s hearings remain unknown, further fueling appetites in Brussels for the grilling of potential new members of the College of Commissioners by the European Parliament. 

These hearings are no easy ride and can be tough to stomach for some. In 2019, Emmanuel Macron put forward Sylvie Goulard for Commissioner, but after a failed hearing — marred by concerns over potential conflicts of interest and ties to a sham employment scandal — the French President was forced to replace her with Thierry Breton, who later became the Commissioner for the Internal Market. Romania and Hungary were also forced to change their candidates in 2019. 

The rules for the hearings remain largely the same from one term to the next: the executive, being accountable to the legislature, is subjected to a thorough grilling by relevant committees to assess their suitability for the role. However, in April 2024, the Parliament’s rules were revisited, and with them, the MEPs’ powers of scrutiny over the Commission.

Assembling the barbeque squad

From now on, more than one or two committees may be involved in grilling the commissioners — there are no more limits. A draft proposal from the Conference of Committee Chairs, which includes the heads of each committee, suggests that for the portfolio of Preparedness, Crisis Management, and Equality assigned to Belgian Hadja Lahbib, four leading committees will need to coordinate: DEVE (Regional Development), FEMM (Women’s Rights), LIBE (Justice and Liberties), and ENVI (Environment, Public Health, and Food Safety). 

Additionally, if certain responsibilities overlap with other committees’ areas, those committees may also be invited to participate. These “invited committees” are similar to the now-defunct “associated committees”, but with a key difference: they are required to submit an opinion that will be attached to the final evaluation letter for the nominated commissioners. 

Basting the marinade

Before the hearings even kick off, commissioners face a written quiz from MEPs, with their answers serving as the warm-up act for the main event: two questions for the Conference of Committee Chairs, three for joint committees (five if they’re solo leading committee), and one question from each invited committee. 

The recipe for the hearings has also been spiced up to ensure a balanced grilling. While the total cooking time remains three hours, an extra hour has been granted for the most extensive portfolios that touch upon several parliamentary committees. So, we can expect the hearings for designated Executive Vice-Presidents Teresa Ribera (Clean, Just and Competitive Transition), Henna Virkkunen (Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy), and Stéphane Séjourné (Prosperity and Industrial Strategy) to be quite lengthy affairs. 

The new rules also stipulate a strict 15-minute presentation from each designated commissioner. Additionally, in a notable change, the time allocated for questions will now be organised in blocks by political groups — only non-attached MEPs will retain individual speaking time. As for the grilled commissioners, they will now have roughly double the time it took to ask the question to respond, and the number of questions is no longer limited to 25 as was previously the case. Finally, as always, the commissioner will have the opportunity to give a brief speech to conclude the hearing. 

Assessing the cuisson

The evaluation of the skills and preparedness of the designated commissioners must be approved by at least half of the MEPs in the relevant committees, but under the new rules the quorum of which half must approve excludes non-attached members.  

If this majority isn’t reached, MEPs can request additional information. Under the previous rules, this could only happen through a new 90-minute hearing, but now it is also possible to send further written questions. 

If the candidate is rejected, the process starts over from scratch. If accepted, the next step is for the President of the European Commission to present her full team to the Parliament in a plenary session, where MEPs will vote on whether to approve the complete College of Commissioners. 

Apply seasoning throughout the mandate

Scrutiny is a dish best served cold – which is why the new rules have introduced “special scrutiny hearings” which can be convened throughout the mandate. These give the Parliament the right to question one or more Commissioners (and other high-level EU officials) about their political actions when deemed “of significant political importance”. Such hearings are expected to resemble the format of confirmation hearings.