EU Bytes


Former Executive Director of the European Casino Association and current Managing Director of Time & Place Consulting, Glenn Cezanne provides the latest info on what’s trending and what’s coming down the pipeline in Brussels and around the EU.


B Glenn Cezanne 28 NOVEMBER 2019


usiness as usual and boring routine in Brussels? One could not be more mistaken. The transition from the Jean-Claude Junker’s European Commission to the new Collége led by


Von der Leyen’s has so far given quite a few political headaches and gossip opportunities. Let’s have a look at the bigger picture and then at the Commissioner-designates relevant to the portfolios of the internal market and justice. Why those two? This is because if we look at gambling and anti-money laundering, EU institutional tradition dictates that these are the two portfolios to look out for.


Institutional transition


The rejection of the Spitzenkandidat process by EU leaders and the selection of controversial candidates and portfolios – think vice-presidency


for “protecting the European Way of Life”? – by Von der Leyen, have emboldened the EU Parliament in the exercise of its scrutiny role. Two of Von der Leyen’s candidates did not go past the preliminary checks of the JURI committee, while the commissioner-designate for Internal Market, Sylvie Goulard, was turned down after two intense hearings with Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in their relevant committees. To make things easier, add to the mix the concurrent fall of the Romanian government (from which a new name was expected after the rejection of Rovana Plumb for the transport portfolio) and the general confusion caused by yet another extension granted to the UK – with the consequent issue of whether a UK Commissioner is to be added to Von der Leyen’s team. No wonder the official start of the new Commission mandate was postponed for one month, with 1 December being


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