Hospital.Help

Brussels In the hearings of the future EU Commission before the European Parliament, the Hungarian candidate Oliver Varhelyi has to go to a second round. After a three-hour hearing last night, it did not receive the necessary approval from the MPs, it was said in the last one from Parliament. Varhelyi will now have to answer further questions in writing in the coming days.

The Hungarian is to take over the health and animal welfare department in Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s team. However, last night he was unable to convince the members of the responsible parliamentary committees for the environment and agriculture that he has the necessary knowledge in the area of ​​health policy. They also expressed concerns about his position on abortion rights, which Hungary had restricted under Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Varhelyi also made enemies in parliament during his previous term as Commissioner for EU Enlargement when he insulted MPs as idiots in front of the microphone in 2023. I can only repeat that this was not intended for the European Parliament, he said in his hearing. I regret what happened, but I can only offer an apology. “I hope you can accept it,” he added.

If they do not consider Varhelyi’s written answers to be sufficient, the MPs can stop his candidacy. In this case, Hungary’s Prime Minister Orban would have to name a replacement, which could delay the entry into office of the entire new Commission, because Parliament must first confirm Ursula von der Leyen’s new team as a whole. The plenary vote is currently scheduled for November 27th. © afp/aerzteblatt.de