After several days of controversy, the European Commission will finally not recruit an American to the post of chief economist of the European Union’s Directorate General for Competition. In a message posted in particular on Twitter this Wednesday morning, the Commissioner in charge of Competition, Margrethe Vestager, indicated that Fiona Scott Morton chose “not to accept the position”.
“I am honored to have been chosen. […] However, in view of the political controversy that arose due to the selection of a non-European to fill the post […], I have determined that the best course of action is to withdraw, and not to take the job, ”wrote the researcher and teacher at Yale in a message shared on Twitter by the European commissioner. And to wish “the best” to the team of Margrethe Vestager. “I accept this with regret, and I hope that she will continue to use her extraordinary skills to press for strict application of competition”, commented, for her part, the representative of the Union.
This announcement was welcomed by many representatives. “We are satisfied with this decision which preserves European digital sovereignty”, commented the entourage of the French Minister Delegate in charge of Digital, Jean-Noël Barrot. “I welcome Fiona Scott Morton’s decision to withdraw her candidacy,” reacted French MEP (Renew Europe) Stéphanie Yon-Courtin. “This is only a first step: we must now shed light on the process which led to this recruitment”, pleaded his colleague (EPP) François Xavier-Bellamy. “What is more surprising is that it came from her, that she was defended by the Commission until the end while Parliament showed a united front”, was surprised the ecologist Karima Delli . “It is a defeat for the European Commission and a great victory for French interests”, considered, for its part, the RN group in the National Assembly.
Opponents of this appointment have therefore managed to make the Commission bend, after several days of intense controversy. From the outset, Fiona Scott Morton’s course, certainly brilliant, made many officials wince, outraged by the arrival of an American who advised Tech giants in this strategic position. “Hiring an American lobbyist from GAFAM at a time when Europe was finally deciding to limit their power, it’s a shame,” was indignant MEP Geoffroy Didier recently, when the director of the think tank American Economic Liberties Project described this choice as a “Trojan horse for Big Tech”, in an interview with Le Monde.
In recent days, the controversy has taken on another dimension, as MEPs and French officials have railed against Brussels. Several tricolor ministers went to the front, and Emmanuel Macron was himself surprised by this appointment, saying he was “doubtful”. Several European commissioners were also beginning to express reluctance, reported in a letter to the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, according to AFP. Hearing before the European Parliament on Tuesday, Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, for her part, justified her choice, considering that “there were not many people in the world who corresponded to this very specific role”. She will now have to restart the process to find another equally talented candidate, but European this time.
