asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will outline the method of appointment of a person to the position of Commissioner of the EEC.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - EEC Commissioner Appointment.
15.
Article 11 of the Treaty establishing a Single Council and a Single Commission of the European Communities provides that members of the commission shall be appointed by common accord of the governments of the member states, for a renewable four year term of office.
Each government formally nominates its Commission candidate at a meeting of representatives usually Foreign Ministers of the governments of the member states, which formally appoints them by common accord.
The members of the Commission were nominated at a conference of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 16 December 1980 and were formally appointed by means of the written procedure on 1 January 1981 when Greece had acceded to the Community. Following the death of the Danish Member of Commission appointed on 1 January 1981, Mr. Poul Dalsager was appointed a member of the Commission and took office on 21 January 1981.
Did not Mrs. Thatcher intervene in relation to the appointment of her nominee? Did the Taoiseach make any representations? Presumably he had a right, if she had a right, to make representations in respect of Mr. O'Kennedy's appointment.
The question of particular portfolios is a matter for the Commission. No head of Government other than the person referred to by the Deputy intervened.
Is the Minister saying——
I am calling on Deputy Quinn. Will the Minister take note of the fact that I have called Deputy Quinn?
Did the Minister say that the member states of the Community have not a function in the allocation of portfolios?
That is so.
In view of the highly publicised intervention of Prime Minister Thatcher, to the detriment of Commissioner O'Kennedy, will the Minister state what action, if any, was taken by this Government to counteract that intervention.
There was no question of intervention as such. A decision was made by the Commission meeting together in conclave.
That is nonsense.
Is the Minister saying Mr. Thatcher did not intervene?
We should deal with facts.
There is no question of any diminution in the office accorded to Commissioner O'Kennedy.
He is only a messenger boy.
That is typical of the attitude of some people in this country.
It is a fact.
This is Question Time. We cannot have a debate on this matter.
Neither I nor anybody else can prevent phone calls taking place.
We know what happened in Brussels.
Will the Minister state if the Government have made any representations to Her Majesty's Government with regard to improper interference in this matter, contrary to the constitution of the European Community as set out in the Treaty of Rome?
What has happened is self-evident to every country in the Community other than the country we are talking about. Eight out of the nine countries would take a very dim view, to put it mildly, of any intervention by a head of state or government in the appointment of commissioners. None of the other countries involved took any steps in the matter.
In other words, we did nothing about it.
The Government are so much in their pocket we cannot even protest.
I am calling Question No. 16.