EU COMMISSION: The Minister is well placed to command a high-ranking job, but he will have to learn the ways of the consensus-driven EU, writes Denis Staunton in Brussels
The decision to send Mr Charlie McCreevy to Brussels has opened up the prospect of the most important Commission portfolio for Ireland since Mr Peter Sutherland was Competition commissioner in the 1980s.
After seven years as Finance Minister in Europe's most successful economy, Mr McCreevy has a strong claim on one of the top economic portfolios. As an economic liberal, he is in tune with the political outlook of the incoming Commission President, Mr José Manuel Barroso, who has promised to promote economic growth and competitiveness.
Mr McCreevy will be competing with heavyweight nominees from Europe's biggest member-states, many of which are demanding a central role in the EU's economic policy-making. Most observers in Brussels expect the Economic and Monetary Affairs, Competition, Internal Market and Trade portfolios to be occupied by nominees from the big states, but Mr Barroso has insisted that his Commission would remain entirely independent and would be firmly under his leadership.
Mr Barroso yesterday rejected a German demand for the creation of a "super-commissioner" in charge of economic policy. He also appeared to rule out the creation of policy "clusters" to be supervised by senior commissioners - an idea favoured by officials close to his predecessor, Mr Romano Prodi.
"One thing must be clear: there will be no first- and second-class commissioners in the Commission over which I will preside," Mr Barroso told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
Among the economic portfolios in the current Commission are Enterprise and Information Society, Research, Budget and Employment and Social Affairs. In the new 25-person Commission, some of these portfolios could be divided and new posts could be created, such as a Competitiveness commissioner responsible for the implementation of the Lisbon Agenda.
Ireland's outgoing Commissioner, Mr David Byrne, said yesterday Mr McCreevy would be a plausible candidate in any of the top economic posts, including that of Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner: "He is arguably the most successful finance minister in Europe. He would be absolutely credible as a nominee for that post."
Fine Gael MEP Ms Avril Doyle said yesterday the idea of Mr McCreevy as the enforcer of the EU's budget rules might sound unlikely in view of his clash with Brussels over the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines three years ago. "The term poacher turned gamekeeper in relation to European affairs comes to mind," she said.
Mr Byrne points out, however, that much has happened since then, notably the suspension of the Stability and Growth Pact in favour of France and Germany. "The Stability and Growth Pact has never been a problem in Ireland. Quite the reverse - we have always been the best pupil in the class," he said.
Mr McCreevy was a cautious chairman of Ecofin, where economic and finance ministers meet, during Ireland's EU presidency. He succeeded in preventing damaging splits among ministers following last November's bitter dispute over the Stability and Growth Pact.
As Mr Proinsias De Rossa observed in a colourful moment yesterday, Mr McCreevy is among the most right-wing finance ministers in Europe. The nature of the EU system means, however, that his ideological instincts could not be given full rein in any Commission post he occupies.
Moreover, as a guarantor of the interests of the EU as a whole, Commissioner McCreevy would be less likely than Minister McCreevy to trumpet self-righteously the superiority of Ireland's route to economic growth.
The Taoiseach said yesterday that, contrary to Mr McCreevy's reputation as something of a Eurosceptic, the Minister for Finance actually "loves Europe".
The accession of 10 new member-states has boosted the number of voices in Brussels that favour Mr McCreevy's brand of liberal economics. For many of the new member-states, job creation is the overriding priority and Ireland's economic success remains the model most would like to follow.
Mr McCreevy's first test will come in September when he will answer questions from the European Parliament, which must approve all new Commissioners. He is likely to face tough questions about his budget dispute with the Commission, his economic policies and his attitude to the European project.
The outgoing President of the European Parliament, Mr Pat Cox, predicted yesterday that Mr McCreevy would probably win the approval of MEPs. "From his background and his skills, he should command a majority in this House, barring accidents," Mr Cox said.
Such "accidents" could be provoked by sharp questioning from Irish MEPs such as Mr De Rossa, who warned yesterday that Mr McCreevy's appointment would represent "a move away from a social Europe in the direction of a supermarket Europe".
The Taoiseach said yesterday that his nomination of Mr McCreevy was motivated by a desire to build on the success of the EU presidency in enhancing Ireland's place in Europe. Mr Ahern identified it as part of a broader strategy that could see more resources directed towards the Department of Foreign Affairs and the upgrading of Ireland's diplomatic representation within Europe and beyond.
There is little doubt Mr McCreevy has the intellectual capacity, the experience and the energy to perform well in a senior Commission post. As he prepares to leave for Brussels, however, the challenge he faces in achieving policy goals in the complex, consensus-driven world of European governance is very different from any he has encountered in a long and successful career in national politics.