On Thursday, the European Parliament voted against a motion of no confidence in the European Commission, headed by Ursula von der Leyen. The initiative was submitted by the Patriots for Europe group and was a consequence of the Commission President’s conclusion of a trade agreement with Mercosur.
On 17 January, the Mercosur agreement was concluded by the Commission at a summit in the capital of Paraguay, Asuncion. Earlier, EU member states had approved its conclusion, despite opposition from Poland, France, Austria, Ireland, and Hungary.
The European People’s Party, to which MEPs from Civic Platform (KO) and the Polish People’s Party (PSL) belong, stated on 19 January on platform X that “referring the EU–Mercosur agreement to the Court of Justice of the European Union would halt the ratification process, forcing Parliament to suspend its work and necessitating a lengthy legal review.” It added that “the EPP believes that blocking the agreement would undermine Europe’s credibility as a global player.”
The future of the European Commission. What did the European Parliament decide?
On Thursday, the European Parliament rejected the motion of no confidence in the European Commission. 165 MEPs voted in favor, 390 against, and 10 abstained.
Adoption of the motion would have meant that the entire Commission (together with its President, Ursula von der Leyen) would have had to resign, and the heads of state and government in the European Council would have had to propose a new candidate for President of the Commission.
For the motion to be adopted, it must obtain a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, representing at the same time a majority of the members of the European Parliament.