Push to reduce 'own nationals' working for Commissioners

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has sought to reduce the number of "own country" nationals working for the 27 new EU Commissioners when they take up their roles later this year, RTÉ News understands.

That would mean Ireland's Commissioner-designate Michael McGrath only having two Irish nationals within his cabinet, compared to the three Irish officials the outgoing Commissioner Mairéad McGuinness would have been entitled to have.

Ms von der Leyen is also expected to insist on having a majority of women working within the 27 Commissioner teams.

"What we understand is there will be a reduction in the number of your own nationals that you're allowed to have in a cabinet," one EU source said.

"There will probably be a requirement to have a majority of women in the cabinet, because there isn't a majority of women in the college [of Commissioners]."

Ms von der Leyen is understood to have conveyed the new rules when she met the new Commissioners-designate in Brussels last week, and to have informed Mr McGrath during his interview on 27 August.

While the new rule cannot legally be instituted within Ms von der Leyen’s current mandate, since the outgoing Commission cannot bind the new one to follow a certain course, she is expected to formally draft the new rules once the new Commission has been approved as a whole by the European Parliament later this year.

Mr McGrath is currently preparing for his own hearing before a committee of the European Parliament, due to take place in October, or more likely November.

Only after the Parliament has approved his position as EU Justice and Rule of Law commissioner can he confirm the composition of his team.

It is understood Ireland’s embassy to the EU - known as the Permanent Representation - has received over 60 applications for positions both within Mr McGrath’s own team, and the cabinets of the 26 other commissioners.

Ahead of the hearings there has been a significant amount of lobbying by officials and candidates of all nationalities, both inside and outside the EU’s institutions, for highly coveted cabinet places.

Each commissioner has a core of six team members, which must be balanced by both gender and geography.

While Irish officials will be limited to two within Mr McGrath’s cabinet, they will be eligible to apply for positions within the teams of other commissioners.

Some may secure places because of a recommendation by the Irish Government, while others are expected to do so off their own bat, based on their EU experience to date.

The Irish Government is said to be keen for the head of Mr McGrath’s cabinet to be Irish. However, it is understood that a non-Irish candidate currently working within the Commission is being considered.

RTÉ News understands that an offer from an incoming commissioner to give Ms von der Leyen discretion over the new heads of cabinet could help a member state gain an influential portfolio.

Mr McGrath has appointed his former special advisor at the Department of Finance Kevin Barrett to lead his transition team.

Mr Barrett will be responsible for assessing candidates for Mr McGrath’s cabinet, as well as liaising with officials within the European Commission’s justice division - given that that will be MrGrath’s portfolio - as well as MEPs ahead of the hearing.

There are expectations that Mr Barrett will also join Mr Grath’s new team; the Department of Justice in Dublin might also be interested in sending an official to Brussels to work with the former finance minister.