Yahoo – AFP,
Danny KEMP, November 20, 2017
Amsterdam won a fierce fight to host the European Medicines Agency after it leaves London, beating Milan in a tiebreak (AFP Photo/Aurore Belot) |
Brussels
(AFP) - Amsterdam and Paris on Monday won the fight to host two major EU
agencies when they leave London after Brexit, in a suspenseful vote that
eventually had to be decided by the drawing of lots.
The
European Medicines Agency will relocate to the Dutch city, while the French
capital will be the new home of the European Banking Authority.
The two watchdogs,
with a total of 1,000 highly skilled jobs between them, are currently based in
London's Canary Wharf district but must leave before Britain quits the EU in
March 2019.
But the
fate of the some most prized spoils of Britain's decision to quit the EU had to
be decided by a lucky dip after three tense rounds of voting for both agencies
failed to produce a clear winner.
Amsterdam
won out against the Italian city of Milan while Paris beat the Irish capital
Dublin.
"It
was a big transparent bowl with two small lots, and it fell to me to draw the
lot," said Matti Maasikas, the deputy EU affairs minister of Estonia,
which holds the bloc's rotating presidency.
"The
procedure was accepted by everyone and followed by the Estonian presidency to
the letter."
'Attractiveness of France'
French
President Emmanuel Macron said the choice of Paris for the banking regulator
showed the "attractiveness of France".
EU
President Donald Tusk said on Twitter before the vote that "whatever the
outcome, the real winner of today's vote is EU27. Organised and getting ready
for Brexit."
Diplomats
compared the complex voting process to the annual Eurovision Song Contest. The
production's nail-biting televised voting sequence is one of the most watched
TV moments in Europe and is known for its come-from-behind surprises.
The
Netherlands hailed the decision to relocate the EMA to Amsterdam as "good
news for all patients in Europe".
"It
took a while to make the decision and the selection process was intensive, but
it shows that the EU27 is able to make good decisions, also after Brexit,"
Dutch Foreign Minister Halbe Zijlstra said.
The battle
for both agencies has been bitterly contested, with governments jostling to win
the backing of other countries with "hot bargaining" behind the
scenes, a diplomatic source told AFP.
But it has
also been deeply political. Carles Puigdemont, the sacked leader of Catalonia,
said that Barcelona had been the "favourite" but that the "state
had condemned it", blaming violence over the region's disputed
independence vote.
There were
16 candidates to be the new home of the EMA, one of the world's most powerful
drugs watchdogs, which employs 900 pharmaceutical experts, biologists and
doctors from every corner of Europe.
There was a
smaller batch of eight bidders for the EBA, the banking regulator with 159
staff members. The agency is perhaps best known for its regular "stress
tests" on the EU's financial sector in the wake of the global financial
crisis.
'Self-inflicted wound'
Member
states brought out all the stops to extol the merits of their candidate cities,
producing glossy brochures and videos and offering a host of perks.
"We
also have a very stylish queen, and enjoy fish and chips," said a video
for Amsterdam's bid, emphasising a continuity with two famed parts of British
life.
The
European Commission, the EU's executive arm, delivered an evaluation of the
applications in September based on a range of criteria, from transport links to
job prospects for spouses and schools.
But the
staff of the agencies in question, already being forced to up sticks from
London, had reportedly been nervous about some of the candidates, reportedly
including Bratislava, Warsaw, Bucharest and Sofia.
For Britain
the departure of the two agencies is an economic and political blow.
"For
the UK, its loss is the first self-inflicted wound of Brexit," said the
centre-right European People's Party, the largest group in the European
Parliament.
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