On invitation from Swedish Prime Minister Reinfeldt, he and the German, Dutch and UK leaders meet yesterday and to day in Harpsund, Sweden to discuss who will be the next commission president. Merkel has publicly supported Jean-Claude Juncker, the others do not want him.
This is a meeting with possible wide implications. It involves a power struggle between the European Parliament and the European Council. Who shall decide ? According to the the Lisbon treaty the European Council shall propose a candidate with a qualified majority. To be accepted the candidate need more than half of the MEP votes. But the meeting has a broader agenda. It concerns the reform process of the EU, choosing of commission president is only one aspect.
The call for a EU-reform have increased in strength in recent years as the problems have risen. Job creation, institutional changes and structural reforms to boost EU competitiveness are high on the agenda. But should the reform direction be more or less integration ? According to BBC Dutch PM Marc Rutte told reporters before the meeting that it was premature to put forward names for who should replace Barroso as head of the commission. "My belief is that we should first focus on content, discuss what the new commission should do .. then discuss who fits that profile".
So it seems unlikely that the meeting will agree on a candidate to lead the commission. But may be they can come up with some ideas of content and form of a EU reform process.
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