Cabinet-making

My old friends at Euractiv have published a guide to the new cabinets. I see Rehn’s deputy chef de cabinet is Fabrizio Barbaso, who I think I’ve met and been friendly with before, though several years ago. I’ve also heard that Mia Åsenius, a Swedish friend of mine who is currently in his cabinet, will stay on to deal with the European Parliament where she used to work. Interesting that Pesonen, the chef de cabinet, and Barbaso, the deputy, are both already Commission officials; must improve the chances of outsiders like me getting the other posts.

I had a good meeting this morning with Graham Watson, leader of the liberal MEPs, who is going off to Serbia and Montenegro this weekend (and I was able to tip him off about imminent intersting developments in EU policy towards the two republics). He is the first person I’ve approached who actually knows incoming Commissioner Rehn particularly well, as they were MEPs together in the mid 1990s. I’ve always got on with him well too – see Midleton whiskey entry from January and he offered with alacrity to Put In A Good Word For Me.

I thought Graham was looking rather well. New haircut, and he’s switched to contact lenses. Also no longer looking over his shoulder at his predecessor – I thought he spent the last two and a half years very much in Pat Cox’s shadow (odd because Graham is much taller, but of course his office is on the fifth floor of the parliament and Pat’s was on the twelfth). And he’s pulled off the triumph of attracting into his group both the centre-right French faction led by Francois Bayrou, and the lefty Italians led by the fantastic Emma Bonino. Well, we’ll see what happens.

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