INSIDE POLITICS:The State's best candidate, rather than Fianna Fáil's, should be put forward as the new EU commissioner, writes STEPHEN COLLINS
BRIAN COWEN has a simple choice to make in his appointment of Ireland’s new EU commissioner: he can appoint a person to represent the Fianna Fáil tribe, or he can appoint someone to represent the country.
Ominously, the hints coming from Government to date indicate that his decision will be made on the narrow ground of party politics.
If the Taoiseach does choose to put party above all other considerations, it will be a calculated insult to most of the 67 per cent who voted Yes to the Lisbon Treaty. More pertinently it would be such bad politics to deliver a slap in the face to the electorate on the eve of what will inevitably be one of the most savage budgets in the history of the State.
With the Taoiseach and his Ministers pleading with the voters, including those on social welfare and low incomes, to accept the need for reduced living standards in the national interest, another display of Fianna Fáil political greed would fuel the already pervasive cynicism about the priorities of our rulers.
The name featuring most prominently in the speculation by Fianna Fáil sources is Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, currently in her second term as a member of the EU court of auditors. It should be said that Geoghegan-Quinn was an impressive and courageous government minister in her day.
But that was 15 years ago.
At this stage, she does not have the profile either at home or in Brussels to warrant appointment to such an important post, particularly as the retention of an Irish commissioner became such an important issue in the referendum campaign.
The stress being put by Government sources on the desirability of appointing a woman rings a bit hollow, as it sounds more like a cover for appointing a Fianna Fáil person than a genuine move to gender equality. The letter from EU Commission president José Manuel Barroso to the Taoiseach suggesting that a woman should be considered was sent to most other countries as well, so there is no particular onus on Ireland to comply.
It may well be the case that, in recognition of Irish compliance on the gender front, Geoghegan-Quinn might be given a relatively good portfolio by Barroso but that is not really the issue. After all Charlie McCreevy had, in theory, a very important portfolio as internal market commissioner but he was never taken very seriously in Brussels.
The crucial thing for Ireland, and for the commission itself, is that this country’s new commissioner should be the best possible one available. There is no argument that the person best fitted for the role is Pat Cox, the former president of the European Parliament, who played a prominent part in expanding the power and influence of the parliament and, more recently, in persuading the Irish people to give such a ringing endorsement to Lisbon.
John Bruton, who has just completed a very successful term as EU ambassador to Washington might have rivalled Cox in the international reputation stakes but he did not play a role in the referendum. In any case, having thrown his hat into the ring for the position of president of the European Council, he has effectively put himself out of the commission running, precisely because he came to the conclusion that Cowen would not even consider his merits for that post.
While the reluctance of the Taoiseach to appoint a former Fine Gael leader as commissioner may be understandable, although not excusable, the same allowance cannot be made in the case of Cox. Not only did Cox play such a key role in the referendum campaign, and in the process help to save Cowen’s job, along with saving the country, he is actually in the same political grouping in Europe as Fianna Fáil.
An important factor not widely understood in Ireland is that political groups at EU level play an important part in deciding the destination of EU posts. For instance, Bertie Ahern’s claims that the job of EU Commission president was his for the taking in 2004 have to be taken with a grain of salt, simply because Fianna Fáil did not belong to one of the big European groups, specifically the European People’s Party, which dominates the political scene at the time and still does. When the EPP finally settled on Barroso, then Portuguese prime minister, he got the job. Cox was a leading figure in one of the big European groups, the ELDR, which Fianna Fáil joined earlier this year. Given that Cowen is one of just four ELDR prime ministers, appointing a leading member of his own group to the commission would be seen in Brussels as the logical as well as desirable thing to do.
There have been some suggestions that Barroso might not be all that keen on Cox and might regard him as some kind of threat on the commission. Whether or not there is any truth in that rumour it should not matter. Ireland should put its best candidate forward for the job whether Barroso likes it or not.
One of the weaknesses of the EU is the inability of its institutions to communicate effectively with its citizens. Even making allowances for the fact that English is not his native language, Barroso has not been an effective communicator.
By contrast Cox is a communicator par excellence and on top of that he is widely known across the EU, particularly in the newer member states of central and eastern Europe who joined when he was president of the parliament.
On both counts he would be an enormous asset to the commission.