New Hearings for EU Commissioners

The new European Commission is gearing itself up for a new round of parliamentary scrutiny as the last of the commissioner hearings begin Monday. Involving the Italian, Hungarian and Latvian nominees, the hearings are expected to pave the way for a majority of MEPs to vote in favor of the commission on Thursday. The parliament, which flexed its muscles and forced the first line-up to be withdrawn two weeks ago, is determined to make sure that these hearings are not perceived as being of a lower standard. "The parliament will be just as strong as last time. It is not a case of rushing everything quickly through the second time," said a parliament spokesperson. As before, the behind-the-scenes political machinations are continuing. The vote will take place on Thursday and, as MEPs can only reject the commission as a whole and not individual commissioners, it is expected to be positive. (EUobserver.com)