Decision time: MEPs about to finish evaluation of new Commission

The fate of the new European Commission led by Jean-Claude Juncker will be decided on Wednesday 22 October when MEPs will be asked to either approve or reject it. However, there will still be two additional hearings before that decision can be taken. Violeta Bulc, commissioner-designate for transport, and Maroš Šefčovič, proposed as Commission vice-president for the energy union, will be questioned on Monday (20 October) following a reshuffle of the portfolios.

New hearings

Two of the portfolios had to be reassigned after Slovenia's Alenka Bratušek, who had been proposed for the energy union portfolio, withdrew her candidacy. Maroš Šefčovič could now become the vice-president responsible for energy, while Violeta Bulc is the new Slovenian candiate who could take up the transport portfolio.Both of them will be questioned by the parliamentary committees responsible for their proposed portfolios in Strasbourg on 20 October from 19h CET. Šefčovič will face the environment and energy committees, Bulc the transport committee.The hearings will be shown live.

Before taking up office, all candidate commissioners have to go through a three-hour-long hearing in the EP, so that MEPs can assess their competence and expertise linked to their respective portfolios. The hearings are then evaulated by the committees and the Conference of Presidents, consisting of European Parliament President Martin Schulz and the leaders of the political groups.
Following the hearings online

Find our coverage of the hearings on the special page, along with videos, comments and background information.

You can also follow the reactions from the political groups on the hearings online. To do this, just click on the name of the group: EPP, S&D, ECR, ALDE, GUE/NGL, Greens/EFA.Search with the #EPhearings2014 hashtag on Twitter for comments and reactions. Find out what the hearings’ hottest topics are on the Twitter dashboard.

A plenary debate is scheduled for Wednesday 22 October when president-elect Jean-Claude Juncker will present the new European Commission and its work programme. On the same day MEPs are also expected to vote on whether to approve or reject the new European Commission.If elected, the new college will enter office on 1 November for a five-year term.