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| EU Commission president-elect Ursula von der Leyen had dug in over the original title 'Protecting our European Way of Life' before finally ceding (AFP Photo/Tobias SCHWARZ) |
Brussels (AFP) - The incoming European Commission chief has changed the title of her migration commissioner from "Protecting our European Way of Life" following criticism it had far-right connotations, an EU official said Wednesday.
Ursula von
der Leyen agreed to modify the title to "Promoting the European Way of
Life" for the commissioner, her spokesman told AFP. Her commission plans
to take charge from next month.
The
original name given to the portfolio had brewed up a storm, especially among
left-wing MEPs who noted a similarity to rhetoric employed by anti-immigration
politicians.
Outgoing
Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said in September he believed the
title would end up being changed, adding: "I don't like the idea that the
European way of life is opposed to migration."
But his
successor von der Leyen dug in for a long time, arguing that the title was
grounded in the language of tolerance enshrined in the EU treaty.
Greece's
Margaritis Schinas, who is set to take on the role, has avoided using the title
though he has defended von der Leyen's position.
Delayed
changeover
Von der
Leyen's hopes of a smooth transition have taken a blow after MEPs blocked three
picks for her team, deeming them unsuitable to become commissioners.
That has
pushed back the date she hoped her Commission would take over, from November 1
to December 1 at the earliest.
Brexit
turmoil and elections in Britain, still an EU member until at least the end of
January, have compounded the commission conundrum, with London dodging her
demands for the UK to also nominate a commissioner.
Von der
Leyen still needs MEPs to confirm her replacement picks for commissioners,
especially France's Thierry Breton, a multi-millionaire former minister who
barely scraped through the parliament's legal affairs grilling.
The leftist
Socialists and Democrats grouping in the European Parliament, which was among
the most vocal against the "Protecting our European Way of Life"
title, hailed the belated change.
Its leader,
Iratxe Garcia, portrayed the modification as von der Leyen bending to pressure
from her group.
"We
all agree that the European way of life is an achievement we must preserve, but
it doesn't have to be defended, rather promoted," Garcia said in a
statement.
She added
that von der Leyen had also agreed to change other job titles, with the jobs
portfolio becoming "jobs and social rights" and the word fisheries
being added to the title carried by the commissioner for environment and
oceans.
A source in
the left-wing bloc of MEPs told AFP the changes "take a bit of pressure
off" the hearings for the commissioner candidates.
A spokesman
for von der Leyen's commission, Eric Mamer, told reporters at a briefing that
he was not yet fully informed on the change of titles for the migration
portfolio, but he said it "puts a nuance that is probably a little more
positive" than the original one.
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