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New Belgian European commissioner for development and humanitarian aid announced
Karel De Gucht takes over from Louis Michel.
The Belgian government has confirmed that Karel De Gucht, the foreign minister, is to succeed Louis Michel as the country’s European commissioner.
Michel has written to European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, informing him that he will stand down as of 13 July to take up his new functions and attend the inaugural session of the newly-elected Parliament in Stasbourg on 14-16 July.
De Gucht will take the dossier of development and humanitarian aid over from Michel, but the date on which he will start has not yet been fixed.
The former Belgian foreign minister “is expected to hold the development portfolio for the remainder of Barroso’s mandate” says European Voice, “he will be given a new portfolio when the new Commission is formed at the end of the year”.
De Gucht, 55, was an MEP in 1980-94 and a member of the Flemish regional parliament in 1995-2003. He became foreign minister in 2004, when he was once again following Michel, who had just left to join the Commission.
As foreign minister he took a much harder line than Michel with some African leaders, notably Joseph Kabila, leader of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a former Belgian colony. He took a much tougher tone on respecting human rights and fighting corruption.
He was also considered a hard-liner in his party on immigration and the rights of asylum-seekers.
In Brussels, some people are already missing Michel.
Undoubtedly, the numbers are in his favour. With 49 billion euros given in 2008 (0,40% of European PIL), the European Union scores 55% of the International aids for poor countries.
A large amount that Michel was hoping to overcome by allocating 69 billion Euros in 2010.
Efficiency in aid was the main topic of the EU commissioner.
“Too much waste,” he has exclaimed many a time “we need to cut intermediary expenses.”
Born in 2006, “European Consensus” is the philosopher’s test on development policies, a test that makes budget expenses grow from 20% to 50%.
“Many people have criticized Michel because of the risk run by giving the money to clearly corrupt governments,” Luisa Morgantini, former member of the Development Commission of the European Parliament, told Vita.
“But the European Parliament agreed and added that a basic condition was a strict control on the delivery of funds,” ended Morgantini.
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