The hearing of Cyprus’ commissioner-designate for the EU and three times ex-minister Costas Kadis will take place on Wednesday afternoon in Brussels.
Kadis, who had been selected by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen for the position of Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, will answer written questions from the two EU parliament committees PECH (fisheries and oceans) and ENVI (environment, public health and food safety), before being called upon to answer a series of oral questions from MEPs on all portfolio issues.
Upon completion of the hearing, members of the two committees in a closed session, will assess the candidate’s suitability of the candidate for the general post, as well as his preparation for the specific role as commissioner for fisheries and oceans. The right to a final decision is reserved by MEPs of PECH.
Five more candidates will appear before the competent parliamentary committees on Wednesday, in addition to Kadis.
Hearings for ten of candidates had taken place by Tuesday night, with most securing the approval from MEPs to move on to the next stage. A decision on Sweden’s candidate, Jessica Rosvall (environment, water resilience and competitive circular economy) after a partly contentious hearing, is expected later in the afternoon. The candidate may be asked to answer additional questions in writing, without excluding a second hearing.
Hearings will continue through Thursday with four candidates, and on Tuesday, November 12, with six candidates to be assessed for executive vice-president positions.
Under EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola, commission heads and leaders of political groups, will consider the assessments of all candidates at a meeting on November 21.
As long as the conference of presidents finds the candidates to have received a positive evaluation from MEPs, it will judge the process complete, and bring the new commission for approval by the plenary on November 25 – 28 in Strasbourg.
Hearings will be broadcast live through the website of the European Parliament. Kadis’ hearing will take place from 3.30pm to 6.30pm local time and can be heard here.
Kadis’ answers to written questions of PECH and ENVI, as well as his CV and a declaration of financial interests have been filed and posted on the site.
