S&D Times - Special edition

A message from Iratxe García Pérez, S&D Group president:

Scrutinising candidates for European Commissioners?is one of our most important tasks.? We, Socialists and Democrats, take this process seriously and will?thoroughly evaluate candidates’ general competence, European commitment and personal independence, as well as their knowledge of portfolios and communication skills. Our goal is to have an outstanding?team of European Commissioners?who will strive for a better and stronger Europe. We have full confidence in our four candidates. They will be the driving force for our progressive values and priorities in the next Commission.

Up next:

It’s hearing time! Today kicks off the much-awaited (and debated) confirmation process for the commissioners-designate.

5 days

26 hearings

At least 78 hours of candidates trying to convince MEPs in the European Parliament’s committees that they are fit for the job.

Not an easy task, but we will guide you through the process.

First of all?–?if you’re a member of the press corps,?please reach out to us and we will add you?to our Signal channel created to instantly update you on reactions and decisions during the hearings?process.

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For each of the candidates we will ensure live coverage on our social media platforms and, of course, our press officers will be closely monitoring the process.

The confirmation process starts at 14:30 today.

First off:

14:30?-?17:30 Maro? ?ef?ovi??(Slovakia) Trade and Economic Security, Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency -?room Antall 2Q2

Glenn Micallef?(Malta) Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport -?room Antall 4Q2

18:30?-?21:30

Christophe Hansen?(Luxembourg) Agriculture and Food -?room Antall 2Q2

Apostolos Tzitzikostas?(Greece) Sustainable Transport and Tourism -?room Antall 4Q2

On Tuesday, 5 November it’s time for:

9:00?-?12:00 Michael McGrath?(Ireland) Democracy, Justice and Rule of Law -?room Antall 2Q2

Ekaterina Zaharieva?(Bulgaria) Startups, Research and Innovation -?room Antall 4Q2

14:30?-?17:30

Dan J?rgensen?(Denmark) Energy and Housing -?room Antall 2Q2

Dubravka ?uica?(Croatia) Mediterranean -?room Antall 4Q2

18:30?-?21:30

Jessika Roswall?(Sweden) Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy -?room Antall 2Q2

Magnus Brunner?(Austria) Internal Affairs and Migration -?room Antall 4Q2

On Wednesday,?the commissioners-designate getting?grilled?are:

9:00?-?12:00

Hadja Lahbib?(Belgium) Preparedness, Crisis Management, Equality -?room Antall 2Q2

Maria Luís Albuquerque?(Portugal) Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union -?room Antall 4Q2

14:30?-?17:30

Costas Kadis?(Cyprus) Fisheries and Oceans -?room Antall 2Q2

Jozef Síkela?(Czech Republic) International Partnerships -?room Antall 4Q2

18:30?-?21:30

Andrius Kubilius?(Lithuania) Defence and Space -?room Antall 2Q2

Olivér Várhelyi?(Hungary) Health and Animal Welfare -?room Antall 4Q2

And the first week of hearings concludes on?Thursday, 7 November, as follows:

9:00?-?12:00

Wopke Hoekstra?(Netherlands) Climate, Net-Zero and Clean Growth -?room Antall 2Q2

Marta Kos?(Slovenia) Enlargement -?room Antall 4Q2

14:30?-?17:30

Piotr Serafin?(Poland) Budget, Anti-fraud, Public Administrations -?room Antall 2Q2

Valdis Dombrovskis?(Latvia) Economy and Productivity, Implementation and Simplification -?room Antall 4Q2

Hearings will conclude on?Tuesday, 12 November, with a day dedicated to the candidates for executive vice-presidents (EVPs) of the next European Commission.

9:00?-?12:00

EVP?Raffaele Fitto?(Italy) Executive Vice-President for Cohesion and Reforms -?room Antall 2Q2

HR & VP?Kaja Kallas?(Estonia) High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy -?room Antall 4Q2

14:30?-?17:30

EVP?Roxana M?nzatu?(Romania) Executive Vice-President for People, Skills and Preparedness -?room Antall 2Q2

EVP?Stéphane Séjourné?(France) Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy -?room Antall 4Q2

18:30?-?21:30

EVP?Teresa Ribera?(Spain) Executive Vice-President for the Clean, Just and Competitive Transition -?room Antall 2Q2

EVP?Henna Virkkunen?(Finland) Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy -?room Antall 4Q2

You can find more details on the process and candidates on the?dedicated section of our site.

Your first time going through the hearing process? Not an issue. Our vice-president Alex Saliba explains it all (in under 60 seconds!) on our website.