BackEU leaders nominate Jean-Claude Juncker for European Commission head
The centre-right Juncker must now appear before the European Parliament and win a confirmation vote set for 16 July on his policy agenda
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Brussels: European Union (EU) leaders nominated Jean-Claude Juncker, the former prime minister of Luxembourg, as president of the bloc’s executive body the European Commission at a summit on Friday despite strong objections from Britain.
British Prime Minister David Cameron, facing calls at home to quit the 28-nation bloc, had mounted a vehement campaign in defiance of EU habits of consensus to deny Juncker the job on the grounds that the 59-year-old veteran of Brussels dealmaking was a federalist committed to expanding the Union’s powers.
The confirmation of his nomination was announced by European Council president Herman Van Rompuy on Twitter: “Decision made," he wrote. “The European Council proposes Jean-Claude Juncker as the next president of the European Commission."
He did not say whether there had been a formal vote among the 28 national leaders—an unprecedented procedure that Cameron had threatened to demand to underline his opposition.
The centre-right Juncker must now appear before the European Parliament and win a confirmation vote set for 16 July on his policy agenda. Reuters
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