EU Parliament Faces New Vote of No Confidence Against Commission

The European Commission, led by Ursula von der Leyen, is once again under scrutiny as it prepares to face two new votes of no confidence in early October. This comes just two months after successfully navigating a previous no-confidence vote.

According to information from the German Press Agency, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, has informed members about the upcoming votes, which are introduced by the right-wing Identity and Democracy (ID) group and the left-wing group. While the criticisms primarily target von der Leyen, the no-confidence votes will be applicable to the entire Commission.

The proposed no-confidence motions highlight concerns regarding the Commission's climate policies and its handling of migration. Specific allegations include a lack of transparency and censorship. Martin Schirdewan, the leader of the Left group, has expressed strong disapproval, claiming that the Commission has engaged in detrimental trade agreements that threaten European industry and jobs. He also criticized the Commission's silence regarding the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The submission of these motions indicates that they have garnered support from at least one-tenth of the 719 current Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), which is a requisite for them to be debated and voted upon during the upcoming parliamentary session.

If either of the no-confidence motions is approved, it would necessitate the resignation of the entire European Commission. However, such an outcome is deemed unlikely, as a two-thirds majority of votes is required for success. This equates to at least 360 votes, and in a scenario where all MEPs are present, it would need to reach 480 votes. During the last election in November, von der Leyen's Commission received 370 out of 688 votes cast.

The previous no-confidence vote in July was fueled by allegations that information regarding exchanged text messages between von der Leyen and the CEO of Pfizer during the COVID-19 pandemic was withheld from the public.

No-confidence motions against the European Commission are relatively uncommon. Prior to the July vote, the last significant attempt occurred in 2014 when right-wing populists attempted to unseat the Commission led by Jean-Claude Juncker. That motion failed, receiving only 101 votes in favor compared to 461 against, with 88 abstentions.

The only instance in which a European Commission has resigned due to a no-confidence motion was in 1999, when the Commission led by Jacques Santer stepped down in light of a report detailing fraud, mismanagement, and nepotism.

It is important to note that previous versions of this article incorrectly stated the number of MEPs as 720. The current total is 719 members, with 720 available seats, meaning that a successful no-confidence vote requires 360 votes rather than 361.