Romanian MEP Adina Vălean (51) will be the new EU commissioner for Transport if it is up to future commissioner Ursula von der Leyen. Sources around the German politician report that her choice fell on Vălean because she has a lot of experience in European politics, also in the field of transport policy.
In addition to Vălean, the new Romanian government also proposed Siegfried Muresan as a candidate. Von der Leyen immediately interviewed both. Both did their presentation well, but partly because she wants as many men as women in her team, Vălean was chosen. The member of the Christian-Democratic European People's Party (EPP) is currently chairman of the industry committee in the European Parliament.
Valean will be heard by the Commission's Transport Committee on 14 November. As a Romanian citizen she replaces Corina Cretu as European Commissioner for Regional Policy in the outgoing Commission led by Jean-Claude Juncker.
The appointment of Valean ends an impasse of almost two months on Romania's proposal for the allocation of the portfolio. At the end of September, the Legal Affairs Committee of the European Parliament said that Romanian EP member Rovana Plumb, who was first nominated by Bucharest, had a conflict of interest for that position. Three other Romanian candidates who were subsequently proposed by the former Social Democratic government were either rejected by the Commission or withdrawn.
The team of committee chairman Von der Leyen is now almost complete. Last week she already accepted the candidates who put forward France and Hungary. Only the British have not yet nominated a commissioner.
The European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee will now assess whether there is no conflict of interest with the French, Hungarian and Romanian candidates. After that they have to go through another hearing. It is planned that the parliament approves the entire committee at the end of November, so that the team can start on 1 December.