STRASBOURG, FRANCE - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has survived a no-confidence vote initiated by the right in the European Parliament. The no-confidence motion, which if passed would have forced von der Leyen and the entire European Commission to resign, received only 175 votes in favour, while 360 MEPs voted against and 18 abstained. In total, 553 of the 720 MEPs took part in the vote, with 360 votes needed to pass the motion.
Politico wrote that although von der Leyen clearly won the vote, the result revealed deeper cracks in her support. The vice-president of the European Parliament, Katarina Barley of the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), warned that for many MEPs this was the "absolute last chance" for von der Leyen to correct the Commission's direction. The vote, the first of its kind since 2014, revealed growing discontent with the Commission's leadership, particularly over accusations of right-wing bias, lack of transparency, centralisation of power and undermining the Green Deal for Europe.
Von der Leyen has retained the support of her European People's Party (EPP), the Socialists, the Renew Liberals and the Greens, but the absence of some MEPs from these groups during the vote signals growing discontent. The Socialists and Liberals have expressed concern about the Commission's right-wing direction, particularly in relation to the retreat from the ambitious goals of the Green Deal and the lack of emphasis on social issues.
The Renew liberals did not support the no-confidence motion because they did not want to "play games" of the far right that could destabilise the EU, a Renew spokesperson told Politico. The Socialists were inclined to support it after von der Leyen gave in to their demand to keep the European Social Fund in the EU budget next week.
This fund, aimed at combating poverty and supporting vulnerable groups, was initially threatened with cuts, prompting strong criticism from the centre-left faction.
The motion of no confidence was tabled by a Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea Although he expected the proposal to fail, he considers the vote "healthy" for the EU, as it shows that the authority of the Commission President can be challenged. "We've opened Pandora's box," Piperea told Politico, adding that he expects further no-confidence motions.
On the contrary Siegfried Mureșan, EPP vice-president, downplayed the importance of the vote, saying that after the summer "we will almost forget about it". Nevertheless, some MEPs from the EPP, Socialists and Renew expressed their disagreement with von der Leyen. For example, two MEPs from Romania (Vincze Loránt and Iuliu Winkler) abstained, as did several Renew and S&D members, including MEPs from Ireland, Slovenia, Malta and Lithuania. One Socialist MEP (Ciaran Mullooly, Ireland) and one Renew MEP (Matjaž Nemec, Slovenia) even voted in favour of the proposal.
According to a report in The Guardian, the no-confidence vote reflects a broader dissatisfaction with von der Leyen, who has faced criticism for her political compromises with conservative and right-wing factions. The Guardian points out that her lurch to the right, particularly on migration and the environment, has alienated some of her original support among the Liberals and Greens. At the same time, the German news server Der Spiegel highlights the increasing centralisation of power in the Commission under von der Leyen, which some MEPs see as an erosion of the EU's democratic principles.
Der Spiegel quotes a German MP Engina Eroglua (Renew), who abstained, adding that "The Commission must be more transparent and less authoritarian".
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, points out that the vote was more a symbolic gesture by the far right than a real threat to von der Leyen. However, it warns that repeated no-confidence motions could weaken her authority, especially if the coalition of the EPP, Socialists and Liberals is further fragmented.
gnews.cz - GH
English 
Czech 
Spanish 
French 
Italian 
Russian 
Chinese 
German