In a surprise announcement, which many in Brussels do not hesitate to define as sensational, Thierry Breton has resigned “with immediate effect”. Breton, outgoing European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services, nominated by France for a second mandate, has published in X the very harsh letter sent to the President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen in which he openly accuses the president of having plotted behind his back, putting pressure on France to propose another candidate, and speaks of “questionable governance”.
Breton's resignation comes 24 hours after the meeting with the leaders of the groups and the presidency of the European Parliament, scheduled for Tuesday 17 September, during which von der Leyen is expected to present the composition of the new Commission, whose formation is encountering several difficulties, starting from the “Fitto case”, passing through what is happening in Slovenia, whose parliament has not yet officially confirmed the name of the former ambassador Marta Kos.
Thierry Breton's resignation
"I resign from my position as European Commissioner, with immediate effect”. This is how the letter that Breton sent to von der Leyen ends. With resignation without appeal, preceded by a harsh attack against the president: “You asked France to withdraw my name, for personal reasons which you have in no case discussed directly with me, and have offered, as a political compromise, a supposedly more influential portfolio for France in the future College,” he wrote.
Breton does not mince his words and speaks of developments that "further testify to a questionable governance” which led him “to the conclusion that he could no longer carry out” his work at the College.
It was no secret that there was no love lost between the two; in fact, several times in the last five years, von der Leyen and Breton had publicly taken different positions, such as when the latter attacked Elon Musk for his interview with Donald Trump on X without warning the president, or when von der Leyen proposed the nomination of EPP MEP Markus Pieper as envoy for SMEs, attracting harsh criticism from Breton.
France: Macron chooses Séjourné instead of Breton
Following the resignation of Breton, who therefore also withdraws from the race for a second term, the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron has proposed the current Foreign Minister, Stéphane Séjourné as European Commissioner "focused on the issues of industrial and technological sovereignty and European competitiveness", the Elysée announced in a statement.
Séjourné was "president of the Renew group (centrists and liberals) in the European Parliament during the previous legislature and meets all the required criteria. His European commitment will allow him to fully implement this sovereignty agenda", the Elysée added.
Meanwhile, he reports Le Monde, the entourage of Michel Barnier He announced that the Prime Minister had “associated himself” with the decision taken by the President of the Republic. And he affirmed “his confidence that the next European Commissioner will be able to work actively towards the action and success of the European College, in the general interest”.
The road to the new Commission is still uphill
“The President” Ursula von der Leyen “takes note and accepts” the resignation French Commissioner Thierry Breton “and thanks him for the work carried out throughout his mandate, in particular for the approval of the “Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act” and other regulations relating to the digital sphere. This was stated by a spokeswoman for the European Commission during the daily briefing with the press.
The same spokeswoman added that Von der Leyen still hopes "to be in a position to present the new college tomorrow, but twenty-four hours in politics can be a long time.”
The embarrassment is palpable and grows hour by hour in view of the fateful appointment scheduled for Tuesday September 17 in Strasbourg, when the President will present – or at this point it would be better to say should present – the 26 new commissioners in front of the parliamentary group leaders. The announcement of the college is still subject to “confirmation”, the spokesperson stressed, with Breton's resignation, which risks upsetting the scenarios for von der Leyen and the entire EU at the last mile.
The assignments were supposed to arrive last week, but it was decided to postpone them. One of the main reasons comes from the Slovenia, which changed its nomination, choosing former ambassador Marta Kos instead of Tomaž Vesel. The Slovenian parliament has not yet formalized its candidate for commissioner, although the government's decision meets von der Leyen's demands on gender equality.
There should be no more doubts about the appointment of Raffaele Fitto for the executive vice-presidency in the next European Commission. Ursula von der Leyen seems in fact intent on ignoring the protests of socialists, liberals and greens and intends to "compensate" Italy, involving it in the Commission, after the "humiliation of June". The numbers, however, are still in the balance. Von der Leyen's hope is that the new commission will take office on November 1st. However, doubts are growing more and more.
