The European Parliament on July 10 rejected a vote of no confidence in European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, keeping her in office. It was the first attempt at a vote of no confidence since 2014.
Euronews writes about this.
In order for the vote of no confidence to be passed, at least 480 votes out of 720 members of the European Parliament were needed. 360 MEPs voted against, 175 voted in favor, and 18 abstained.
Politico previously wrote that Ursula von der Leyen would survive the vote, as most political forces immediately made it clear that they would vote against the no-confidence vote.
“In a time of global instability and unpredictability, the EU needs strength, vision and the ability to act. We need all of us to address our common challenges. Together. As external forces seek to destabilize and divide us, it is our duty to respond in line with our values. Thank you, and long live Europe,” the head of the European Commission wrote.
What preceded
Romanian far-right MP Gheorghe Piperea has tabled a motion of no confidence in the head of the European Commission. Far-right MEPs say they have secured sufficient support for their proposal to dismiss the entire European Commission. Earlier, the EU court ruled against von der Leyen, ruling that she violated transparency rules when she refused to release personal correspondence with the CEO of the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer Albert Burla about the supply of vaccines in 2021.
The lawsuit was filed by the American newspaper The New York Times. The publication claimed that Ursula von der Leyen unreasonably refused to publish text messages in which she agreed with the head of Pfizer the terms of contracts for the supply of vaccines to European Union countries. The court rejected the European Commissionʼs argument that the messages were "impossible to find".
- The European Commission is the highest executive body of the European Union, roughly corresponding to the role and functions of government in nation-state systems. Unlike national governments, the European Commission can also exercise the function of legislative initiative.
- The Commission consists of 27 members, including a President and a Vice-President. Although each member is appointed by a national government, one from each EU member state, they do not represent their country in the EC. However, in practice they sometimes represent their countriesʼ national interests.
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