Thierry Breton of France stepped down as a member of the European Commission on Monday. He will no longer be his country’s candidate for the next EU executive body. This is an unexpected twist in the highly political EU power transition.
Breton announced his resignation on X as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen – prepares to announce this week who will be part of her new five-year team. He had accused von der Leyen of “questionable governance”.
Hours after Breton’s resignation, France named Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne as its new candidate for the EU executive body. President Emmanuel Macron’s office made it clear he was vying for France to obtain a key portfolio centred on industrial sovereignty and European competitiveness.
Breton is one of the highest-profile members of the European Commission for the past five years. He is best known for sparring publicly with tech billionaire Elon Musk. He also played a key role in shaping the 27-nation EU’s Big Tech regulation, its COVID-vaccine response and efforts to boost defence industries.
Forceful Resignation?
In his resignation letter, Breton alleged that von der Leyen “a few days ago” had asked France to withdraw his name as its pick for the Commission “for personal reasons” in return for an “allegedly more influential portfolio”.
“In light of these latest developments – further testimony to questionable governance – I have to conclude that I can no longer exercise my duties in the College,” Breton said in the letter.
Reuters was unable to verify the allegation. Von der Leyen’s office declined to make any comment.
Breton, a former French minister and business executive, was the EU’s industry and internal market commissioner during her first term. He had backed the telecoms sector’ push to get Big Tech to help fund the rollout of 5G and fast-speed broadband across Europe.
His and von der Leyen’s relationship had taken a turn for the worse over recent months. The French commissioner, a liberal, had angered von der Leyen by publicly criticising her nomination as the European conservative EPP’s party candidate to head the Commission for a second term, EU officials have said.
Key Jobs
Breton’s public feuds with Musk had also been met with dismay among other Commission colleagues, officials added.
Nevertheless, the latest developments were a surprise, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said, adding that Breton had been expected to be reappointed by von der Leyen.
The move can also been seen as a power play between the EU’s two biggest heavyweights, von der Leyen’s home country Germany and France, over who calls the shots in the E, at a time when Macron is weakened at home.
As the EU’s second-biggest member state, France is vying for a major post in the new Commission team, which follows on European Parliament elections in June. This is the starting point every five years for a shake-up of key jobs in EU institutions that have a major impact on policymaking across the bloc.
Each EU member state will have one seat at the Commission’s table, although their political weight and importance varies greatly depending on the portfolio.
(with inputs from Reuters)
