The LSAP political party, currently on the opposition benches, has issued a press release criticising the government's decision to nominate Christophe Hansen for the post of Luxembourg EU Commissioner,
A member of the CSV political party, 42-year-old Christophe Hansen was elected MEP in 2018 and served until 2023 when he decided to run in Luxembourg's 2023 general election in he was elected. At the European Parliament, he has been EPP coordinator on the Committee on International Trade (INTA) since 2019 and was European Parliament rapporteur for the post-Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the UK; he was also was elected second quaestor in January 2022. Previously, he worked for the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, and was Economic and Commercial attaché at Luxembourg's embassy in Brussels.
The LSAP has "denounced the nomination by Prime Minister Luc Frieden of his party colleague Christophe Hansen" for the position of Luxembourg Commissioner to the European Commission. They argue that the decision "risks weakening Luxembourg's position in Europe" and that the nomination "constitutes a blatant lack of respect for the functioning of the institutions and could place Luxembourg in a delicate situation on the European stage".
The LSAP continued by arguing "by ignoring the agreement concluded between the main political groups in the European Parliament, the future of the European Commission risks being compromised before it is even set up". They claimed that "the delicate balance that allowed Ursula von der Leyen to become President of the European Commission provides for a 'strategic position' for the lead candidate of the European socialist and social democratic parties in the last elections, namely Nicolas Schmit, a member of the LSAP".
According to the LSAP, a former Commissioner in the previous Commission, Nicolas Schmit can boast not only of his vast experience and the respect of his peers for his political action, but also of the success of the electoral campaign he led at European level.
The LSAP's referred to when Jean-Claude Juncker (CSV) became President of the European Commission in 2014, it was thanks to the goodwill of the LSAP-DP-Gréng government coalition. Instead of proposing its candidate to the Commission, who was none other than Nicolas Schmit, the government had given precedence to the lead candidate of the European People’s Party, Jean-Claude Juncker, in the greater interest of the country due to the importance of the position to be filled and out of respect for the agreements reached between the majority political groups in the European Parliament.
The LSAP also pointed out that the nomination of lead candidates from the majority political groups to strategic positions within the Commission was also respected in 2019, when the centre-right Dutch government proposed the socialist Frans Timmermans to become Vice-President of the European Commission.
The LSAP is very unhappy that, "in order to favour a member of his political family, Luc Frieden decided to break with this unspoken rule" which they argue "constitutes a blatant lack of respect towards Nicolas Schmit, the Party of European Socialists and the LSAP, which in the last European elections, with a gain of 10% of the vote, almost equalled the CSV which only managed to progress by 1.8%".
The opposition party concluded by arguing that, "by ignoring the agreement between the political groups at European level and breaking the rule concerning lead candidates, he risks compromising the future European Commission and thus endangers Luxembourg's position at European level".
