In a letter that takes aim at Ursula von der Leyen, France’s Thierry Breton has announced his resignation as European Commissioner.
Breton had been nominated for a second term as European Commissioner by French President Emmanuel Macron, but withdrew, accusing European Commission President von der Leyen of covertly seeking to have him dropped as his country’s candidate.
Von der Leyen did this, Breton alleged, “for personal reasons” that she has not made known to him.
In the letter posted on X, Breton writes: “A few days ago, in the very last stretch of negotiations on the composition of the future of the College, you asked France to withdraw my name – for personal reasons that in no instance you have discussed directly with me – and offered, as a political trade-off, an allegedly more influential portfolio for France in the future College.”
“You will now be proposed a different candidate,” he continues.
I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my colleagues in the College, Commission services, MEPs, Member States, and my team.
— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) September 16, 2024
Together, we have worked tirelessly to advance an ambitious EU agenda.
It has been an honour & privilege to serve the common European interest🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/wQ4eeHUnYu
Breton says that over the past five years, he has “relentlessly striven” to uphold and advance the common European good, describing the opportunity as “an honour”.
“However, in light of these latest developments – further testimony to questionable governance – I have to conclude that I can no longer exercise my duties in the College.
“I am therefore resigning from my position as European Commissioner, effective immediately,” Breton writes.
In an additional post, Breton shared a picture of a blank frame with the caption: “Breaking news: My official portrait for the next European Commission term.”
🚨Breaking news:
— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) September 16, 2024
My official portrait for the next European Commission term ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/BolWcdYiPU
This comes as von der Leyen seeks to finalise the next College of Commissioners, a college with a particular emphasis on gender balance which has seen countries pressured into withdrawing male candidates in favour of female.
The Irish Government previously came under pressure from von der Leyen as a result of its refusal to abide by her request to put forward a female nominee for the EU commission role, in place of former finance minister, Michael McGrath.
Tensions between Breton and von der Leyen have erupted into public view in the past, with the frenchman’s letter to Elon Musk ahead of the billionaire’s August 12 interview with Donald Trump on his social media platform, X implied to be out of step with von der Leyen.
In the letter, Breton warned Musk to adhere to EU law to ensure that “potentially harmful content” wasn’t amplified as a result of the interview – despite the interview taking place in the United States.
On that occasion, the European Commission denied that Breton had approval from von der Leyen to send the letter, saying that the “timing and the wording of the letter were neither co-ordinated or agreed with the president nor with the [commissioners]”.
The Financial Times reported an anonymous EU official as saying, “Thierry has his own mind and way of working and thinking”.
Similarly, in March, Breton launched an attack against the European People’s Party (EPP) after it didn’t offer a unified backing of von der Leyen.
“Despite her qualities, Ursula von der Leyen is outvoted by her own party,” Breton said in his post
“The real question now: ‘Is it possible to (re) entrust the management of Europe to the EPP for 5 more years, i.e. 25 years in a row?’ The EPP itself does not seem to believe in its candidate,” he wrote.
Malgré ses qualités, Ursula von der Leyen mise en minorité par son propre parti.
— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) March 7, 2024
La vraie question désormais:
“Est-il possible de (re)confier la gestion de l’Europe au PPE pour 5 ans de plus, soit 25 ans d’affilée?”
Le PPE lui-même ne semble pas croire en sa candidate. https://t.co/fmlqOqm7j0
France must now submit a new candidate for European Commissioner.