ABHI Guest Blog with Steve Bridges: If it Wasn't for Bad Luck
The European Parliament elections in May brought down the curtain on a five-year term that saw unprecedented strain placed on the European Union. The bloc lurched from one crisis to another during the last term. If it wasn’t for bad luck, the EU would have had no luck at all.
The togetherness of the EU has been tested like never before from the second half of the Greek debt crisis, to the refugee crisis (many of these end with “crisis”), Brexit and trade posturing by President Trump. The quietness of the streets here in Brussels tell me that almost everybody from the EU institutions has afforded themselves a long break which they no doubt consider well deserved.
The EU institutions spent June and July doing what they do best; terse late-night agreements that seem to please nobody but somehow represent a small step forward. There was some anger that none of the lead candidates (Spitzenkandidaten) put forward during the European Parliament election campaign ended up with any of the top jobs. The agreements reached in no longer smoky back rooms saw the discussion change from “who do we want?” to “who don’t we hate?”. This is a thought process you may be familiar with if you have ever voted in the Eurovision song contest. Wee small hours delirium resulted in the Dadaesque situation of the new European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, from Germany, being proposed by France, while Chancellor Merkel abstained on voting for her own government Minister. When France proposes a German candidate, you know they are really desperate to find an agreement and toddle off to bed.
Each of the three EU institutions has undergone change ahead of the new five-year term commencing and it is worth looking at each in brief to see what it means for the HealthTech sector:
European Commission
Healthcare policy has been shown very little love by the last two Commission Presidents, Jean-Claude Juncker and José Manuel Barroso. Occasionally it was an afterthought and mostly not even a thought at all. It is a positive development that the new President Ursula von der Leyen is a medical doctor, and many of Brussels’ health stakeholders are hoping for a kind of “health in all policies” approach under her leadership.
Each EU Member State has to nominate its candidate Commissioner, which some, but not all, have done already. Those candidates must be voted on by Parliament following hearings in Autumn. There is usually a dance whereby Parliament, because it can, opposes a candidate or two on the basis of corruption skeletons or scary tweets in their closet. Then follows (you guessed it) some more late night meetings resulting in uneasy compromise. Commissioners are then appointed to a portfolio on the basis of almost anything but their personal experience and competences.
European Parliament
The EU election results left a new European Parliament which is the most fragmented to date. Fears about right-wing and populist gains were not entirely well placed, as the traditionally largest party (EPP and Socialist groups) votes gravitated towards the liberals, greens and the right wing. Cross-party agreements and compromise will be more important than ever. Late-night meetings all round!
This balance has interesting impact on the ENVI committee where medical devices and other health policies are covered. There is a new possible majority between Socialists, Liberals, Greens and the left party GUE, representing 40 of 76 MEPs. This will set alarm bells ringing for those who fear industry-sceptic approaches to health product legislation.
The new President of the European Parliament didn’t appear to know he was a candidate himself until the afternoon before he was appointed by MEPs. David Sassoli, an Italian Socialist, was the archetypal dark horse who won the race from out of nowhere.
Council of the EU
You may remember the idea of having a President of the Council was to stop traffic in Washington. Ladies and gentlemen of Washington make way for the Interim Prime Minister of Belgium. Charles Michel will be the new President of the Council. He was hated by almost nobody at 4am in the negotiations and is currently thought to be practicing his US traffic signals.
Michel has a tough task to follow in Donald Tusk who was considered as a major success in his role. However, Michel may find it easier to moderate the problems concerning rule of law in Poland and Hungary coming from a more neutral standpoint than the Solidarnosc hero Tusk.
In the tumult of today’s political discourse, the slow and steady approach of the EU, previously considered as rather dull and fusty, is now something to hang onto for those who crave stability. Brussels is aware of its new place in the spotlight. Previously it would have been unthinkable that a meeting between Jean-Claude Juncker and President Trump made it onto the front page of the New York Times; above the fold. Several lead figures (Tusk, Juncker, Verhofstadt, Vestager) managed to elevate themselves above the fold to become widely recognised political figures. Savvy use of social media had a big part to play in that. It remains to be seen whether the new class of leaders can carve out a similarly prominent place in the public eye.
All of this change will impact the next episode of Brexit. Sources familiar with the situation tell me that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has succeeded in his goal to make the EU take seriously his willingness to drive UK towards a no-deal exit at Halloween. However, they also think the reality he must face is that he is in the same situation as his predecessor, with rather less personal goodwill from his negotiating partners than Theresa May enjoyed. It is often forgotten that Boris Johnson knows Brussels better than most due to part of his childhood and cub journalist days being spent here. He knows then that very few people leave those late-night meetings fully satisfied.
Steve Bridges is a Brussels-based independent public affairs professional: www.bridges.be