Former PM’s chances for plum EU posting rocked by wiretaps/ political manoeuvering
If Portugal’s former Socialist prime minister António Costa isn’t appointed president of the European Council next week, he can blame the latest events that have dominated national political news, suggests Spanish newspaper El Pais – namely the deeply embarrassing wiretaps leaked by CNN Portugal, and general political manoeuvering.
El Pais’ article focuses on last week, and how it didn’t go Mr Costa’s way: after the informal dinner in Brussels, which was used to negotiate the next EU posts, CNN Portugal “broadcast the transcript of a telephone conversation that may have rocked the former Prime Minister’s candidacy for the European Council”, says the paper.
In the transcript, António Costa essentially ordered the sacking of Ms Ourmières-Widener to save the government’s skin.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office has opened an investigation into the leak. According to “Público”, the decision by the Attorney General’s Office came after “CNN Portugal released several summaries of phone taps involving António Costa and João Galamba, former Prime Minister and former Minister of Infrastructure, respectively”.
Last Monday, the European Council began a debate on top positions in the European Union (EU), which should culminate in a decision at the European summit at the end of the coming week.
Names most bandied about in Brussels have been those of António Costa for the European Council, Ursula von der Leyen for a new term at the head of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, the Prime Minister of Estonia for High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Roberta Metsola for re-election to the leadership of the European Parliament.
Mr Costa’s chances have always been overshadowed by judicial investigations in the context of Operation Influencer (which appear still not to have moved forwards in any way), but the recordings of his conversations with former infrastructure minister João Galamba have enormous implications, and a CHEGA request for him to answer questions on the ongoing ‘favoritism’ controversy has added to the issues that now ‘hang in the air’.
