Italy loses EU justice portfolio to France

El País reports on Italy losing the justice portfolio in the European commission after a statement released Tuesday said Italian commissioner Franco Frattini’s post would go to French transport chief Jacques Barrot.

The commission statement said that in the interest of ensuring “coherence and effectiveness of the complex and sensitive work” in the justice portfolio, and in the event of Frattini resigning, the job would be handed over to Barrot, who has been caretaker justice chief since Frattini went on leave.

Although Frattini has not officially resigned, he did submit a request for a week’s leave from his EU post on 21 April. It is reported that media tycoon, Silvio Berlusconi, has promised him the foreign minister’s position in his newly elected government.

Meanwhile, Italian daily Il Sole 24 Hore reports a jubilant Frattini saying that Italy had caught the “big one”, referring to the transport job.

But Corriere della Sera says that outgoing Italian prime minister Romano Prodi has expressed his “profound disappointment” at the decision to take the justice portfolio from Italy, while the paper goes on to describe tensions between Brussels and Rome over the move.

And the EPP-ED group in parliament released a statement on 17 April, quoting MEP Klaus-Heiner Lehne endorsing the qualifications of Italian deputy Antonio Tajani for the justice post.

“Antonio Tajani has a proven track-record. He has strong managerial skills in European legal affairs and can foster the role of Europe in the world. Those are the two key factors a commissioner for justice and home affairs has to bring along,” said Lehne.

• Previous article
• Next article