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Thierry Breton is Victory War of Ideas in Brussels.
The ex-CEO is a political whirlwind with a huge portfolio as internal markets chief, the endorsement of French President Emmanuel Macron and plenty of offers. he’s been EU capitals tour To win support for falling energy prices, US subsidies and plans to rescue Europe’s industry “Naïve” EU free traders,
France’s decades-long push for more state intervention is finally paying off Some echo in Berlin and the 13th floor of the Berlemont building is occupied by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who largely owes her job to Macron.
Ubiquitous and spirited, Breton is playing a key role in marshaling industry and political support for wider, but as yet vague plans to promote clean tech, secure key raw materials and scrutinize the EU on government support That he bangs too slow to help companies.
“Of course there is resistance; my job is to manage and align it all,” They told French TV is reporting meetings this week with Spanish, Polish and Belgian leaders to hammer out upcoming industrial policy in January, which could be a turning point in how far European governments will finance companies.
Time is short. Von der Leyen wants to prepare proposals for the February summit. European industry is complaining it can’t swallow much higher energy prices and tighter regulation for much longer announced at least one European shutdown and an Asian expansion.
Breton said there was no need to convince governments on the need for quick action. But he is running up against one of Europe’s holy cows – EU state aid rules driven by Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager that curb government support with lengthy checks to ensure that companies do not receive undue help. He is also under intense pressure to maintain a “level playing field” as smaller countries worry about German and French financial firepower.
The French internal market commissioner’s bullish style often sees him act as if he has a role to play in subsidies. In the fall, he sent a letter to EU countries asking them to send views on emergency state aid rules to the Internal Market Department, which is under his supervision, recalled two EU officials.
In a meeting with European diplomats, a Commission representative had to rectify this, with EU officials asking capitals to ensure that the input goes to the competition department overseen by Vestager instead.
europe first
While Breton hates to be called a protectionist, his latest mission is to save Europe from its transatlantic friend.
In early September, a commission official said, French was mandated by Europe’s industry to speak out against US President Joe Biden anti-inflation lawwhich provides tax credits for US-made electric cars and supports American battery Delivery method
their Paris campaign The allegation further escalated while EU officials and diplomats broached the subject. Some within commission headquarters found his poor police routine helpful in keeping the pressure on the US
“He is constructive, though clearly disruptive,” said Tyson Barker, head of the technology and global affairs program at the German Council of Foreign Relations.
French has even offered himself as a block”sheriffAgainst Silicon Valley Veterans, warning billionaire Elon Musk that an overhaul of the Twitter social network can only go so far “in Europe” the bird will fly by our rules,
“Big tech companies only understand the balance of power,” said Cedric O, a former French digital minister who worked with Breton during his presidency of the French EU Council. “When [Breton and Musk] They see each other, it is necessarily cordial, but Breton shows his teeth and is right. It’s his job.”
Breton may also stagger its services, according to two EU officials. In May, the Commission’s department responsible for digital policy – DG CONNECT – was alarmed when Breton announced to the press that he would unveil plans by the end of the year to ensure that the technology giant would have a separate system for telecoms networks. have become
In doing so, Breton – who was CEO of France Telecom in the early 2000s – resurrected a long-dormant and fractious policy debate that had been put to rest nearly a decade ago, when the then Digital Commissioner Neelie Kroes calls on Europe’s telecom operators to “customize or dieInstead of asking for money from content providers.
Following Breton’s commitments, the commission’s services were hastily scrambling to develop a coherent policy program to deliver on French’s comments. A consultation is scheduled for early this year.
blanch
Breton is a rare creature in the halls of Berlemont, where policy is made slowly after extensive consultation. For a former CEO with a wide remit — his portfolio runs from the tiniest of microchips to the gamut of space — a rapid response matters more than treading on toes or singing from a hymn sheet. This often sees him floating thoughts and then pulling back.
Last year he alerted environmentalists by raising the possibility of a U-turn on the EU’s polluting car ban, He pointed his finger at German Chancellor Olaf Scholz solo trip to china, he asked Nuclear Energy will be considered green. He has put forward grandiose projects – such as industrial alliances on batteries and the cloud, or a cyber shield – that he has not always followed through.
He has also pushed for a multi-billion euro European Union. communication satellite program Dubbed Iris², a favorite of French aerospace companies, the block would see it as a rival to Musk’s space-based Starlink broadband constellation.
“It is clear that he has been given more free rein than others,” said an EU official. “He has von der Leyen’s ear,” the official said, noting that Breton is “privileged” to chair the commission – who may be wary that he needs French support for a second term. will be required.
In fact, Breton’s towering role was partly designed as a counterweight to a German press.
“Von der Leyen is criticized for being too German,” said Sébastien Maillard, director of the Jacques Delors Institute think tank. “There may inevitably be a division of roles between them – [where Breton is] a balance.
he has been called an “unguided missile,” But more often than not, the French have Paris backing them when they go off script. their october op-ed That, along with Italian colleague Paolo Gentiloni, called for greater European financial solidarity was part of France’s agenda, according to a high-ranking Commission official.
“When he came to the press with Gentiloni against Scholz’s €200 billion, he was clearly working for Macron,” the official said.
his november Call for reconsideration of 2035 car engine ban It came just a week after Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermann finalized crucial green legislation and clashed with the EU’s own position at the COP 27 climate summit in Indonesia. But it echoed the position of French auto industry captains, such as Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares and Renault’s Luca de Meo, who wanted Brussels to put the brakes on the climate drive.
According to two commission officials, Bratton had not coordinated his car comments with his colleagues in advance.
Less than 10 days later, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne resounding warned of an “extremely ambitious” engine ban and warned that turning to electric car manufacturing was challenging.
going on the a-list
Breton himself admitted that he was not Macron’s first choice for the key EU post, telling Politico at a live event He was the “Plan B commissioner”.
Asked if he was targeting an A-list job for the new commission’s mandate in 2024, he said he “might be able to consider a new Plan B assignment — if it’s a Plan B.” Is.”
“He is looking to the future,” said an EU official. “Check out his LinkedIn post. He’s thinking about the next European elections. He certainly wants to persuade Macron to get an expanded portfolio.
Grabbing the Commission’s top job could be difficult, depending on how EU leaders act, according to several EU and French officials.
There are other jobs, including overturning the unwritten law that no French or German candidate can hold an economically powerful competing portfolio. Another option could be to become Europe’s official digital czar, combining enforcement powers Digital Services Act And this digital market act An EU official said that in a supranational digital enforcement agency.
Britten has dismissed speculation about his long-term plans.
“All my life, I’ve been notified about my next potential job 15 minutes in advance,” he said. Told last month.
Jacob Hanke Vella, Stuart Lau, Barbara Moens, Camille Gijs and Mark Scott contributed reporting.