{{infobox|above
Headerstyle	background:#ccf;
Labelstyle	background:#ddf;
Label1	Status
Data1	EU institution
Label2	Role
Data2	Executive cabinet
Label3	Established
Data3	1958
Header4	College
Label5	Current college
Data5	Barroso Commission
Label6	President
Data6	José Manuel Barroso
Label7	First Vice-President
Data7	Catherine Ashton
Label8	Vice-Presidents
Data8	Viviane RedingJoaquín AlmuniaSiim KallasNeelie KroesAntonio TajaniMaroš Šefčovič
Label9	Total members
Data9	Twenty-seven
Header10	Administration
Label11	Workinglanguages
Data11	EnglishFrenchGerman
Label12	Staff
Data12	25,019
Label13	Departments
Data13	Twenty-four
Label14	Location
Data14	Brussels, BelgiumLuxembourg, Luxembourg }}

The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union.

The Commission operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "commissioners" ). There is one member per member state, though members are bound to represent the interests of the EU as a whole rather than their home state. One of the 27 is the Commission President (currently José Manuel Durão Barroso) proposed by the European Council and elected by the European Parliament. The Council then appoints the other 26 members of the Commission in agreement with the nominated President, and then the 27 members as a single body are subject to a vote of approval by the European Parliament. The first Barroso Commission took office in late 2004 and its successor, under the same President, took office in 2010.

The term "Commission" is used either in the narrow sense of the 27-member ''College of Commissioners'' (or ''College'') or to also include the administrative body of about 23,000 European civil servants who are split into departments called Directorates-General and Services. The internal working languages of the Commission are English, French and German. The Members of the Commission and their "cabinets" (immediate teams) are based in the Berlaymont building of Brussels.

History[link]

The European Commission derives from one of the five key institutions created in the supranational European Community system, following the proposal of Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, on 9 May 1950. Originating in 1951 as the High Authority in the European Coal and Steel Community, the Commission has undergone numerous changes in power and composition under various Presidents, involving three Communities.

Establishment[link]

The first Commission originated in 1951 as the nine-member "High Authority" under President Jean Monnet (see Monnet Authority). The High Authority was the supranational administrative executive of the new European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It took office first on 10 August 1952 in Luxembourg. In 1958 the Treaties of Rome had established two new communities alongside the ECSC: the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). However their executives were called "Commissions" rather than "High Authorities". The reason for the change in name was the new relationship between the executive and the Council. Some states such as France expressed reservations over the power of the High Authority and wished to limit it giving more power to the Council rather than the new executives.

Louis Armand led the first Commission of Euratom. Walter Hallstein led the first Commission of the EEC, holding the first formal meeting on 16 January 1958 at the Castle of the Valley of the Duchess. It achieved agreement on a contentious cereal price accord as well as making a positive impression upon third countries when it made its international debut at the Kennedy Round of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations. Hallstein notably began the consolidation of European law and started to have a notable impact on national legislation. Little heed was taken of his administration at first but, with help from the European Court of Justice, his Commission stamped its authority solidly enough to allow future Commissions to be taken more seriously. However, in 1965 accumulating differences between the French government of Charles de Gaulle and the other member states (over British entry, direct elections to Parliament, the Fouchet Plan and the budget) triggered the "empty chair" crisis ostensibly over proposals for the Common Agricultural Policy. Although the institutional crisis was solved the following year, it cost Etienne Hirsch his presidency of Euratom and later Walter Hallstein the EEC presidency despite otherwise being viewed as the most 'dynamic' leader until Jacques Delors.

Early development[link]

The three bodies, collectively named the European Executives, co-existed until 1 July 1967 where, by means of the Merger Treaty, they were combined into a single administration under President Jean Rey. Due to the merger the Rey Commission saw a temporary increase to fourteen members, although all future Commissions were reduced back down to nine following the formula of one member for small states and two for larger states. The Rey Commission completed the Community's customs union in 1968 and campaigned for a more powerful, elected, European Parliament. Despite Rey being the first President of the combined communities, Hallstein is seen as the first President of the modern Commission.

The Malfatti and Mansholt Commissions followed with work on monetary co-operation and the first enlargement to the north in 1973. With that enlargement the Commission's membership increased to thirteen under the Ortoli Commission (the United Kingdom as a large member was granted two Commissioners), which dealt with the enlarged community during economic and international instability at that time. The external representation of the Community took a step forward when President Roy Jenkins, recruited to the presidency in January 1977 from his role as Home Secretary of the United Kingdom's Labour government, became the first President to attend a G8 summit on behalf of the Community. Following the Jenkins Commission, Gaston Thorn's Commission oversaw the Community's enlargement to the south, in addition to beginning work on the Single European Act.

Jacques Delors[link]

One of the most notable Commissions was that headed by Jacques Delors, with later Presidents failing to achieve the same degree of personal recognition. Delors was seen as giving the Community a sense of direction and dynamism. Delors and his team are also considered as the "founding fathers of the euro". The International Herald Tribune noted the work of Delors at the end of his second term in 1992: "Mr. Delors rescued the European Community from the doldrums. He arrived when Europessimism was at its worst. Although he was a little-known former French finance minister, he breathed life and hope into the EC and into the dispirited Brussels Commission. In his first term, from 1985 to 1988, he rallied Europe to the call of the single market, and when appointed to a second term he began urging Europeans toward the far more ambitious goals of economic, monetary and political union."

Jacques Santer[link]

The successor to Delors was Jacques Santer. However the entire Santer Commission was forced to resign in 1999 by the Parliament as result of fraud and corruption scandal, with a central role played by Édith Cresson. These frauds were revealed by an internal auditor Paul van Buitenen.

That was the first time a Commission had been forced to resign ''en masse'' and represented a shift of power towards the Parliament. However the Santer Commission did carry out work on the Amsterdam Treaty and the euro. In response to the scandal the European Anti-fraud Office (OLAF) was created.

Romano Prodi[link]

Following Santer, Romano Prodi took office. The Amsterdam Treaty had increased the Commission's powers and Prodi was dubbed by the press as something akin to a Prime Minister. Powers were strengthened again with the Nice Treaty in 2001 giving the President more power over the composition of their Commission.

José Manuel Barroso[link]

In 2004 José Manuel Barroso became President; however, the Parliament once again asserted itself in objecting to the proposed membership of the Barroso Commission. Due to the opposition Barroso was forced to reshuffle his team before taking office. The Barroso Commission was also the first full Commission since the enlargement in 2004 to 25 members and hence the number of Commissioners at the end of the Prodi Commission had reached 30. As a result of the increase in the number of states, the Amsterdam Treaty triggered a reduction in the number of Commissioners to one per state, rather than two for the larger states.

Allegations of fraud and corruption were again raised in 2004 by former chief auditor Jules Muis. A Commission officer Guido Strack reported alleged fraud and abuses in his department in years 2002-2004 to OLAF and was fired as result. In 2008 Paul van Buitenen (the former auditor known from Santer Commission scandal) alleged European Anti-fraud Office (OLAF) of lack of independence and effectiveness.

Barroso's first Commission term expired 31 October 2009. Under the Treaty of Nice, the first Commission to be appointed after the number of member states reached 27 would have to be reduced to "less than the number of Member States". The exact number of Commissioners was to be decided by a unanimous vote of the European Council and membership would rotate equally between member states. Following the accession of Romania and Bulgaria in January 2007, this clause took effect for the next Commission. The Treaty of Lisbon, which entered force on 1 December 2009 mandated a reduction the number of commissioners to two thirds of member-states from 2014 unless the Council decided otherwise. Membership would rotate equally and no member state would have more than one Commissioner. However, the treaty was rejected by voters in Ireland in 2008 with one main concern being the loss of their Commissioner. Hence a guarantee given for a rerun of the vote was that the Council would use its power to amend the number of Commissioners upwards. However according to the treaties it still has to be fewer than the total number of members, thus it was proposed that the member state that doesn't get a Commissioner would get the post of High Representative — the so called 26+1 formula. This guarantee (which may find its way into the next treaty amendment, probably in an accession treaty) contributed to the Irish approving the treaty in a second referendum in 2009.

Lisbon also combined the posts of European Commissioner for External Relations with the Council's High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy. This post, also a Vice-President of the Commission, would chair the Council of the European Union's foreign affairs meetings as well as the Commission's external relations duties. The treaty further provides that the most recent European elections should be "''taken into account''" when appointing the Commission, although the President is still proposed by the European Council; the European Parliament would "''elect''" the Commission rather than "''approve''" it as under the Treaty of Nice.

Powers and functions[link]

The Commission was set up from the start to act as an independent supranational authority separate from governments; it has been described as "the only body paid to think European". The members are proposed by their member state governments, one from each, however they are bound to act independently – neutral from other influences such as those governments which appointed them. This is in contrast to the Council, which represents governments, the Parliament, which represents citizens, and the Economic and Social Committee, which represents organised civil society.

Through the article 17 of the Treaty on European Union the Commission has several responsibilities: develop medium-term strategies; draft legislation and arbitrate in the legislative process; represent the EU in trade negotiations; make rules and regulations, for example in competition policy; draw up the budget of the European Union; and to scrutinise the implementation of the treaties and legislation.

Executive power[link]

Before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the executive power of the Union was held by the Council: it conferred on the Commission such powers for it to exercise. However, the Council was theoretically allowed to withdraw these powers, exercise them directly, or impose conditions on their use. This aspect has been changed by the Treaty of Lisbon, after which the Commission exercises its powers just by virtue of the treaties. Powers are more restricted than most national executives, in part due to the Commission's lack of power over areas like foreign policy – that power is held by the European Council, which some analyses have described as another executive.

Considering that under the Lisbon Treaty the European Council has become a formal institution with the power of appointing the Commission, it could be said that the two bodies hold the executive power of the Union (the European Council also holds individual national executive powers). However, it is the Commission which currently holds executive powers over the European Union. The governmental powers of the Commission have been such that some such as former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt have suggested changing its name to the "European Government", calling the present name of commission "ridiculous".

Legislative initiative[link]

The Commission differs from the other institutions in that it alone has legislative initiative in the European Union, meaning only the Commission can make formal proposals for legislation– legislative proposals cannot originate in the legislative branches. Under the Treaty of Lisbon, no legislative act is allowed in the field of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. In the other fields, however, Council and Parliament are able to request legislation; in most cases the Commission initiates the basis of these proposals, this monopoly is designed to ensure coordinated and coherent drafting of Union law. This monopoly has been challenged by some who claim the Parliament should also have the right, with most national parliaments holding the right in some respects. However, the Council and Parliament may request the Commission to draft legislation, though the Commission does have the power to refuse to do so as it did in 2008 over transnational collective conventions. Under the Lisbon Treaty, EU citizens are also able to request the Commission to legislate in an area via a petition carrying one million signatures, but this is not binding.

The Commission's powers in proposing law have usually centred on economic regulation. It has put forward a large number of regulations based on a "precautionary principle". This means that pre-emptive regulation takes place if there is a credible hazard to the environment or human health: for example on tackling climate change and restricting genetically modified organisms. This is opposed to weighting regulations for their effect on the economy. Thus, the Commission often proposes stricter legislation than other countries. Due to the size of the European market this has made EU legislation an important influence in the global market.

Recently the Commission has moved into creating European criminal law. In 2006, a toxic waste spill off the coast of Côte d'Ivoire, from a European ship, prompted the Commission to look into legislation against toxic waste. Some EU states at that time did not even have a crime against shipping toxic waste leading to the Commissioners Franco Frattini and Stavros Dimas to put forward the idea of "ecological crimes". Their right to propose criminal law was challenged in the European Court of Justice but upheld. As of 2007, the only other criminal law proposals which have been brought forward are on the intellectual property rights directive, and on an amendment to the 2002 counter-terrorism framework decision, outlawing terrorism‑related incitement, recruitment (especially via the internet) and training.

Enforcement[link]

Once legislation is passed by the Council and Parliament, it is the Commission's responsibility to ensure it is implemented. It does this through the member states or through its agencies. In adopting the necessary technical measures, the Commission is assisted by committees made up of representatives of member states and of the public and private lobbies (a process known in jargon as "comitology"). Furthermore, the Commission is responsible for the implementation of the EU budget; ensuring, along with the Court of Auditors, that EU funds are correctly spent.

In particular the Commission has a duty to ensure the treaties and law are upheld, potentially by taking member states or other institutions to the Court of Justice in a dispute. In this role it is known informally as the "guardian of the treaties". Finally, the Commission provides some external representation for the Union, alongside the member states and the Common Foreign and Security Policy, representing the Union in bodies such as the World Trade Organisation. It is also usual for the President to attend meetings of the G8.

College[link]

:''For details on the current members, see Barroso Commission.'' The Commission is composed of a college of "Commissioners", 27 members in all, including the President and vice-presidents. Even though each member is appointed by a national government, one per state, they do not represent their state in the Commission (however in practice they do occasionally press for their national interest). Once proposed, the President delegates portfolios between each of the members. The power of a Commissioner largely depends upon their portfolio, and can vary over time. For example, the Education Commissioner has been growing in importance, in line with the rise in the importance of education and culture in European policy-making. Another example is the Competition Commissioner, who holds a highly-visible position with global reach. Before the Commission can assume office, the college as a whole must be approved by the Parliament. Commissioners are supported by their personal cabinet who give them political guidance, while the Civil Service (the DGs, see below) deal with technical preparation.

Appointment[link]

The President of the Commission is first proposed by the European Council taking into account the latest Parliamentary elections; that candidate can then be elected by the European Parliament or not. If not, the European Council shall propose another candidate within one month. The candidate has often been a leading national politician but this is not a requirement. In 2009, the Lisbon Treaty was not in force and Barroso was not "elected" by the Parliament, but rather nominated by the European Council; in any case, the centre-right parties of the EU pressured for a candidate from their own ranks. In the end, a centre-right candidate was chosen: José Manuel Barroso of the European People's Party.

There are further criteria influencing the choice of the candidate, these include: which area of Europe the candidate comes from, favoured as Southern Europe in 2004; the candidate's political influence, credible yet not overpowering members; language, proficiency in French considered necessary by France; and degree of integration, their state being a member of both the eurozone and the Schengen Agreement. In 2004, this system produced a number of candidates and was thus criticised by some MEPs: following the drawn-out selection, the ALDE group leader Graham Watson described the procedure as a "Justus Lipsius carpet market" producing only the "lowest common denominator"; while Green-EFA co-leader Daniel Cohn-Bendit asked Barroso after his first speech "If you are the best candidate, why were you not the first?"

Following the election of the President, and the appointment of the High Representative by the European Council, each Commissioner is nominated by their member state (except for those states who provided the President and High Representative) in consultation with the Commission President, although he holds little practical power to force a change in candidate. However the more capable the candidate is, the more likely the Commission President will assign them a powerful portfolio, the distribution of which is entirely at his discretion. The President's team is then subject to hearings at the European Parliament which will question them and then vote on their suitability as a whole. If members of the team are found to be too inappropriate, the President must then reshuffle the team or request a new candidate from the member state or risk the whole Commission being voted down. As Parliament cannot vote against individual Commissioners there is usually a compromise whereby the worst candidates are removed but minor objections are put aside so the Commission can take office. Once the team is approved by parliament, it is formally put into office by the European Council (TEU Article 17:7).

Following their appointment, the President appoints a number of Vice-Presidents (the High Representative is mandated to be one of them) from among the commissioners. For the most part, the position grants little extra power to Vice-Presidents, except the first Vice-President who stands in for the President when he is away. Since 2009 the First Vice President has gained further power by also being the High Representative.

Political styles[link]

The present Commission, the Barroso Commission, took office in late 2004 after being delayed by objections from the Parliament which forced a reshuffle. In 2007 the Commission increased from 25 to 27 members with the accession of Romania and Bulgaria who each appointed their own Commissioners. With the increasing size of the Commission, President Barroso has adopted a more Presidential style of control over the college, which has earned him some criticism.

However, despite Barroso being a more presidential and high profile figure than his predecessors, the Commission has begun to lose ground to the larger member states as countries such as France, the UK and Germany seek to sideline its role. This might increase with the creation of the President of the European Council under the Treaty of Lisbon. There has also been a greater degree of politicisation within the Commission.

Organisation[link]

The Commission is primarily based in Brussels, with the President's office and the Commission's meeting room based on the 13th floor of the Berlaymont building. The Commission also operates out of numerous other buildings in Brussels and Luxembourg. When the Parliament is meeting in Strasbourg, the Commissioners also meet there in the Winston Churchill building to attend the Parliament's debates. The Commission is divided into departments known as Directorates-General (DGs) that can be likened to departments or ministries. Each covers a specific policy area such as Agriculture or Justice and citizens' rights or internal services such as Human Resources and Translation and is headed by Director-General who is responsible to a Commissioner. A Commissioner's portfolio can be supported by numerous DGs, they prepare proposals for them and if approved by a majority of Commissioners it goes forward to Parliament and Council for consideration. There has been criticism from a number of people that the highly fragmented DG structure wastes a considerable amount of time in turf wars as the different departments and Commissioners compete with each other. Furthermore the DGs can exercise considerable control over a Commissioner with the Commissioner having little time to learn to assert control over their staff.

According to figures published by the Commission, 23,043 persons were employed by the Commission as officials and temporary agents in April 2007. In addition to these, 9019 "external staff" (e.g. Contractual agents, detached national experts, young experts, trainees etc.) were employed. The single largest DG is the Directorate-General for Translation, with a 2186-strong staff, while the largest group by nationality is Belgian (21.4%), probably due to a majority (16,626) of staff being based in the country. The Commission's civil service is headed by a Secretary General, currently Catherine Day.

Press[link]

Communication with the press is handled by the Directorate-General Communication. The Commission's chief spokesperson is Johannes Laitenberger who takes the midday press briefings, commonly known as the "Midday Presser". It takes place every weekday in the Commission's press room at the Berlaymont where journalists may ask questions of Commission officials on any topic and legitimately expect to get an "on the record" answer for live TV. Such a situation is unique in the world.

It has been noted by one researcher that the press releases issued by the Commission are uniquely political. A release often goes through several stages of drafting which emphasises the role of the Commission and is used "for justifying the EU and the commission" increasing their length and complexity. Where there are multiple departments involved a press release can also be a source of competition between areas of the Commission and Commissioners themselves. This also leads to an unusually high number of press releases, 1907 for 2006, and is seen as a unique product of the EU's political set-up.

There is a larger press corps in Brussels than Washington D.C.; in 2007 media outlets in every Union member-state had a Brussels correspondent. However since the global downturn by 2010 the press corps in Brussels shrunk by a third. There is only one journalist covering EU news for Latvia and none for Lithuania. Although there has been a world wide cut in journalists, the considerable press releases and operations such as Europe by Satellite and EuroparlTV leads many news organisations to believe they can cover the EU from these source and news agencies.

Legitimacy[link]

Some argue that the method of appointment for the Commission increases the democratic deficit in the European Union. While the Commission is the executive branch, the candidates are chosen individually by the 27 national governments, which means it is not possible for a Commission Member or its President to be removed directly by the ballot box. Rather, the legitimacy of the Commission is mainly drawn from the vote of approval that is required from the European Parliament, along with Parliament's power to dismiss the body, which, in turn, raises the concern of the relatively low turnout (less than 50%) in elections for the European Parliament since 1999. While that figure may be higher than that of some national elections, including the off-year elections of the United States Congress, the fact that there are no elections for the position of Commission President calls the position's legitimacy into question in the eyes of some.

A further problem is the lack of a coherent electorate, even though democratic structures and methods are developing there is not such a mirror in creating a European civil society. The Treaty of Lisbon may go some way to resolving the deficit in creating greater democratic controls on the Commission, including enshrining the procedure of linking elections to the selection of the Commission president. An alternative viewpoint on the Commission states that the policy areas in which it has power to initiate legislation are ill suited to an institution subject to electoral pressures. In this respect the Commission has been compared with institutions such as independent Central Banks which deal with technical areas of policy. In addition some defenders of the Commission point out that legislation must be approved by the Council in all areas (the ministers of member states) and the European Parliament in some areas before it can be adopted, thus the amount of legislation which is adopted in any one country without the approval of its government is limited.

In 2009 European ombudsman published statistics of citizens' complaints against the European Union institutions, with most of them filed against European Commission (66%) and concerning lack of transparency (36%). In 2010 the Commission was sued for blocking access to documents on EU biofuel policy. This happened after media alleged the Commission of blocking scientific evidence against biofuel subsidies. Lack of transparency, unclear lobbyist relations, conflicts of interests and excessive spending of the Commission was highlighted in a number of reports by internal and independent auditing organisations.

See also[link]

Brussels and the European Union

Europe 2020

European Commission diplomatic missions

European Commission Representation in Ireland

European Free Trade Association Surveillance Authority

Institutions of the European Union

List of European Commissioners by nationality

President of the European Commission

Seventh Framework Programme

Statue of Europe

Footnotes[link]

External links[link]

European Commission ec.europa.eu – official website

*Barroso Commission

*Representation in the Member States

*Photo archive of past Commissions

European Navigator ena.lu – Multimedia website with historical information on the European Commission

Category:Anti-dumping authorities Category:1967 establishments

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Name	Nigel Farage
Honorific-suffix	MEP
Office	Europe of Freedom and Democracy President
Term start	1 July 2009 (de facto)
Predecessor	(post established)
Office	Leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party
Term start	5 November 2010
Predecessor	Jeffrey Titford
Term start1	27 September 2006
Term end1	27 November 2009
Predecessor1	Roger Knapman
Successor1	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
Office2	Member of the European Parliament for South East England
Term start2	15 July 1999
Birth date	April 03, 1964
Birth place	Kent, England, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Party	UK Independence Party
Spouse	Gráinne Hayes (1988-1997, divorced)Kirsten Mehr (1999-present)
Children	4
Alma mater	Dulwich College
Religion	Church of England
Website	Nigel Farage MEP
Footnotes	}}

Nigel Paul Farage (, ; born 3 April 1964, Farnborough,Kent), is a British politician and is the Leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP), a position he also held from September 2006 to November 2009. He is a Member of the European Parliament for South East England and co-chairs the Eurosceptic Europe of Freedom and Democracy group.

Farage is a founding member of the UKIP, having left the Conservative Party in 1992 after they signed the Maastricht Treaty. Having unsuccessfully campaigned in European and Westminster parliamentary elections for UKIP since 1994, he gained a seat as an MEP for South East England in the 1999 European Parliament Election — the first year the regional list system was used — and was re-elected in 2004 and 2009. Farage describes himself as a libertarian and rejects the notion that he is a conservative.

In September 2006, Farage became the UKIP Leader and led the party through the 2009 European Parliament Election in which it received the second highest share of the popular vote, defeating Labour and the Liberal Democrats with over two million votes. However he stepped down in November 2009 to concentrate on contesting the Speaker John Bercow's seat of Buckingham in the 2010 general election.

At the 2010 General Election, Farage failed to unseat John Bercow and received only the third highest share of the vote in the constituency. Shortly after the polls opened on 6 May 2010, Nigel Farage was injured in an aircraft crash in Northamptonshire. The two-seated PZL-104 Wilga 35A had been towing a pro-UKIP banner when it flipped over and crashed shortly after takeoff. Both Farage and the pilot were hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries.

In November 2010, Farage successfully stood in the 2010 UKIP leadership contest, following the resignation of its leader, Lord Pearson of Rannoch. Farage was also ranked 41st (out of 100) in ''The Daily Telegraph'''s Top 100 most influential right-wingers poll in October 2009, citing his media savvy and his success with UKIP in the European Elections. Farage was ranked 58th in the 2010 list compiled by Iain Dale and Brian Brivati for the Daily Telegraph.

Background[link]

Farage was educated at Dulwich College before joining a commodity brokerage firm in London. He ran his own brokerage business from the early 1990s until 2002. In his early 20s Farage was diagnosed with testicular cancer but made a full recovery.

Farage has been married twice. He married Gráinne Hayes in 1988, with whom he had two children: Samuel (1989) and Thomas (1991). In 1999 he married Kirsten Mehr, a German national, by whom he has two more children, Victoria (born 2000) and Isabelle (born 2005).

Farage has also penned his own memoirs, entitled "Fighting Bull." It outlines the founding of UKIP and his personal and political life so far.

Political career[link]

Conservative Party[link]

Active in the Conservative Party from his school days, Farage left the party in 1992 when John Major's government signed the Treaty on European Union at Maastricht.

UKIP and the European Parliament[link]

Farage became a founding member of UKIP in 1993.

He was elected to the European Parliament in 1999 and re-elected in 2004 and 2009. Farage is presently the leader of the thirteen-member UKIP contingent in the European Parliament, and co-leader of the multinational eurosceptic group, Europe of Freedom and Democracy.

UKIP party leadership[link]

On 12 September 2006, Farage was elected leader of UKIP with 45% of the vote, 20% ahead of his nearest rival. He pledged to bring discipline to the party and to maximise UKIP's representation in local, parliamentary and other elections. In a PM programme interview on BBC Radio 4 that day he pledged to end the public perception of UKIP as a single-issue party and to work with allied politicians in the Better Off Out campaign, committing himself not to stand against the MPs who have signed up to that campaign (ten in all at this moment).

At his maiden speech to the UKIP conference on 8 October 2006, he told delegates that the party was "at the centre-ground of British public opinion" and the "real voice of opposition". Farage said: "We've got three social democratic parties in Britain — Labour, Lib Dem and Conservative are virtually indistinguishable from each other on nearly all the main issues" and "you can't put a cigarette paper between them and that is why there are nine million people who don't vote now in general elections that did back in 1992."

At 10pm on 19 October 2006, Farage took part in a three-hour live interview and phone-in with James Whale on national radio station talkSPORT. Four days later, Whale announced on his show his intention to stand as UKIP's candidate in the 2008 London Mayoral Election. Farage said that Whale "not only has guts, but an understanding of what real people think". However Whale later decided not to stand and UKIP was represented by Gerard Batten. He stood again for UKIP leadership in 2010 after his successor Lord Pearson stood down. On the 5th November 2010 it was announced Farage had won the leadership contest.

Westminster elections[link]

Farage had unsuccessfully contested UK parliamentary elections for UKIP five times, both before and after his election as an MEP in 1999. Under the 2002 European Union decision to forbid MEPs from holding a dual mandate, if he was ever elected to the House of Commons, he would have to resign his seat as an MEP.

When he contested the Bromley & Chislehurst constituency in a May 2006 by-election, organised after the sitting MP representing it, eurosceptic Conservative Eric Forth, died, Farage came third, winning 8% of the vote, beating the Labour Party candidate. This was the second-best by-election result recorded by UKIP out of 25 results, and the first time since the Liverpool Walton by-election in 1991 that a party in government had been pushed into fourth place in a parliamentary by-election on mainland Britain.

2010 UK General election[link]

On 4 September 2009 Farage resigned as leader of UKIP to concentrate on his campaign to become Member of Parliament for Buckingham at Westminster in the 2010 general election. He later told Times journalist Camilla Long that UKIP internal fights took up too much time.

He stood against Buckingham MP John Bercow, the newly elected Speaker of the House of Commons, despite a convention that the speaker, as a political neutral, is not normally challenged in his or her bid for re-election by any of the major parties.

On 6 May, on the morning the polls opened in the election, just before eight o'clock Farage was involved in a light aircraft crash, suffering injuries described as non-life-threatening. A spokesperson told the BBC that "it was unlikely Mr Farage would be discharged from hospital today [6 May] Although his injuries were originally described as minor, his sternum and ribs were broken, and his lung punctured. The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) report said that the aeroplane was towing a banner, which caught in the tailplane, forcing the nose down.

Farage came third with 8,401 votes. Bercow was re-elected, and in second place with 10,331 votes was John Stevens, a former Conservative MEP who campaigned as an independent accompanied by "Flipper the Dolphin" (a reference to MPs flipping second homes).

On 1 December 2010, the pilot of the aircraft involved in the accident was charged with threatening to kill Farage. He was also charged with threatening to kill an AAIB official involved in the investigation into the accident. In April 2011, Justin Adams was found guilty of making death threats. The judge said the defendant was "clearly extremely disturbed" at the time the offences happened adding "He is a man who does need help. If I can find a way of giving him help I will."

Alternative Vote referendum, May 2011[link]

Farage declared himself personally in favour of the Alternative Vote system of May 2011, saying first-past-the-post is a "nightmare" for UKIP. However, the party's stance has to be decided by its central policy making committee.

Controversies and whistleblowing[link]

Copyright infringement[link]

In 1999 the BBC spent four months filming a documentary about his European elections campaign but didn't show it. Farage, then head of UKIP's South East office, asked for a video and got friends to make illegal copies which were sold for £5 through the UKIP magazine. Surrey Trading Standards investigated and Farage has admitted the offence.

Expenses disclosure[link]

In May 2009, ''The Guardian'' reported that Farage had said in a speech to the Foreign Press Association that over ten years as a member of the European Parliament he received £2 million of taxpayers' money in staff, travel, and other expenses on top of his £64,000 a year salary.

The former Europe Minister, Denis MacShane, said that this showed that Farage was "happy to line his pockets with gold". Farage called this a "misrepresentation", pointing out that the money had been used to promote UKIP's message, not salary, but he welcomed the focus on the issue of MEP expenses, claiming that "[o]ver a five year term each and every one of Britain's 78 MEPs gets about £1 million. It is used to employ administrative staff, run their offices and to travel back and forth between their home, Brussels and Strasbourg." He also pointed out the money spent on the YES campaign in Ireland by the European Commission was "something around 440 million", making the NO campaign's figure insignificant in comparison.

Jacques Barrot[link]

On 18 November 2004, Farage announced in the European Parliament that Jacques Barrot, the French Commissioner designate, had been barred from elected office in France for 2 years, after being convicted in 2000 of embezzling £2 million from government funds and diverting it into the coffers of his party. He claimed that French President Jacques Chirac had granted Barrot amnesty. Although initial BBC reports claimed that, under French law, it was illegal even to mention the conviction, the prohibition in question only applies to French officials in the course of their duties. The president of the Parliament, Josep Borrell, enjoined him to retract his comments under threat of "legal consequences". However, the following day it was confirmed that Barrot had received an 8 month suspended jail sentence in the case, and that this had been quickly expunged by the amnesty decided by Chirac and his parliamentary majority. The Commission's president, Jose Manuel Barroso admitted that he had not known of Barrot's criminal record when appointing him as a Commission vice-president. The Socialist and Liberal groups in the European Parliament then joined UKIP in demanding the resignation of Barrot for failing to disclose the conviction during his confirmation hearings.

José Manuel Barroso[link]

During the spring of 2005, Farage requested that the European Commission disclose where the individual Commissioners had spent their holidays. The Commission did not provide the information requested, on the basis that the Commissioners had a right of privacy. The German newspaper ''Die Welt'' reported that the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso had spent a week on the yacht of the Greek shipping billionaire Spiro Latsis. It emerged soon afterwards that this had occurred a month before the Commission under Barroso's predecessor Romano Prodi approved 10.3 million euro of Greek state aid for Latsis' shipping company. It also became known that Peter Mandelson, then a member of the Commission, had accepted a trip to Jamaica from an unrevealed source.

Farage persuaded around 75 MEPs from across the political divide to back a motion of no confidence in Barroso, which would be sufficient to compel Barroso to appear before the European Parliament to be questioned on the issue. The motion was successfully tabled on 12 May 2005, and Barroso appeared before Parliament at a debate on 26 May 2005. The motion was heavily defeated. A Conservative MEP, Roger Helmer, was expelled from his group, the European People's Party - European Democrats (EPP-ED) in the middle of the debate by that group's leader Hans-Gert Poettering as a result of his support for Farage's motion.

Joseph Daul[link]

In January 2007, the French farmers' leader Joseph Daul was elected the new leader of the European People's Party–European Democrats (EPP-ED), the European Parliamentary grouping which then included the British Conservatives. The UK Independence Party almost immediately revealed that Daul had been under judicial investigation in France since 2004 as part of an inquiry into the alleged misuse of public funds worth €16 million (£10.6 million) by French farming unions." It was not suggested that Daul had personally benefited, but was accused of "complicity and concealment of the abuse of public funds." Daul accused Farage of publicising the investigation for political reasons and threatened to sue Farage, but did not do so though the court dropped all charges against him.

Prince Charles[link]

Prince Charles gave a speech to the European Parliament on 14 February 2008, in which he called for EU leadership in the war against climate change. During the standing ovation that followed, Farage was the only MEP to remain seated and went on to describe the Prince's advisers as "naïve and foolish at best." Farage continued: "How can somebody like Prince Charles be allowed to come to the European Parliament at this time to announce he thinks it should have more powers? It would have been better for the country he wants to rule one day if he had stayed home and tried to persuade Gordon Brown to give the people the promised referendum [on the Treaty of Lisbon]." The leader of the UK Labour Party's MEPs, Gary Titley, accused Farage of anti-Royalism. Titley said: "I was embarrassed and disgusted when the Leader of the UK Independence Party, Nigel Farage, remained firmly seated during the lengthy standing ovation Prince Charles received. I had not realised Mr Farage's blind adherence to right wing politics involved disloyalty and discourtesy to the Royal Family. He should be thoroughly ashamed of himself and should apologise to the British people he represents."

Herman Van Rompuy[link]

After the speech of Herman Van Rompuy on 24 February 2010 in the European parliament, Farage—to protests from other MEPs—addressed the first long-term President of the European Council saying that he has the "charisma of a damp rag and the appearance of low grade bank clerk". Farage questioned the legitimacy of Van Rompuy's appointment asking "Who are you? I'd never heard of you, nobody in Europe had ever heard of you", he also asserted that Van Rompuy's "intention is to be the quiet assassin of European democracy and of European nation states." In the same speech he also referred to Belgium, the home of Van Rompuy, as a "non-country". Van Rompuy commented afterwards, "There was one contribution that I can only hold in contempt, but I'm not going to comment further." After refusing to apologise for behaviour that was, in the words of the President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, "inappropriate, unparliamentary and insulting to the dignity of the House", Farage was reprimanded and had his right to ten days' allowance (expenses) rescinded.

The President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, said after his meeting with Farage:

I defend absolutely Mr Farage's right to disagree about the policy or institutions of the Union, but not to personally insult our guests in the European Parliament or the country from which they may come. [. . .] I myself fought for free speech as the absolute cornerstone of a democratic society. But with freedom comes responsibility - in this case, to respect the dignity of others and of our institutions. I am disappointed by Mr Farage's behaviour, which sits ill with the great parliamentary tradition of his own country. I cannot accept this sort of behaviour in the European Parliament. I invited him to apologise, but he declined to do so. I have therefore - as an expression of the seriousness of the matter - rescinded his right to ten days' daily allowance as a Member.

Questioned by Camilla Long, Farage declared of his speech "it wasn't abusive, it was right."

European economic governance[link]

He spoke of the EU being "German-dominated" in a speech at the European-Parliament on 18 November 2011.

Views on the euro[link]

From taking office as a UKIP MEP in 1999, Farage has often voiced opposition to the "euro project". His argument is that "a one size fits all interest rate" cannot work for countries with structurally different economies, often using the example of Greece and Germany to emphasise contrast. He predicted the need for 'bailouts' before European Commission and European Central Bank officials admitted that these steps would be necessary. Specifically, Farage predicted that Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain would all require such assistance. To date, Spain is the only predicted country that has not asked for a 'bailout'. Although Spain and Italy have both had indirect assistance from the ECB, whereby secondary government bonds are bought by the central bank, they are prohibited from purchasing new bonds. Farage warns: "You can ignore the markets if you want to, but in time the markets will not ignore you". Farage also reinforces Germany's argument that Italy "should never have joined the euro".

Farage predicts that if the situation continues it will lead to violence due to the people's inability to "determine their own futures through the ballot box" as it will become the only "logical" tool to enable them to escape from their "economic prison" i.e. the Eurozone. He proclaims "I can only hope and pray that the euro project is destroyed by the markets before that really happens."

Farage strongly opposes the use of 'bailouts' and claims that "buying your own debt with tax payers money" will not solve the problem and that, "if we do, the next debt crisis won't be a country", "it will be the European Central Bank itself".

Electoral performance[link]

Nigel Farage has contested several elections under the United Kingdom Independence Party banner:

Itchen, Test and Avon, European Parliament Election 1994 - 12,423 votes, representing 5.2% of total votes cast

Eastleigh by-election, 1994 - 952, 1.4%

Salisbury, 1997 general election - 3,332, 5.7%

European Parliament election, 1999 - elected member for South East England from party list

Bexhill and Battle, 2001 general election - 3,474, 7.8%

European Parliament election, 2004 - elected member for South East England from party list

South Thanet, 2005 general election - 2,079, 5.0%

Bromley and Chislehurst by-election, 2006 - 2,307, 8.0%

European Parliament election, 2009 - elected member for South East England from party list.

Buckingham, 2010 general election - 8,410, 17.4%

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

2002 Amnesty law

Penal Code, articles L133-9, L133-10, L133-11

External links[link]

Nigel Farage MEP ''Official website''

Nigel Farage ''Profile at European Parliament website''

UKIP MEPs ''Official website of the UK Independence Party in the European Parliament''

Europe of Freedom and Democracy ''Political group in the European Parliament''

Category:1964 births Category:Living people Category:United Kingdom Independence Party politicians Category:Members of the European Parliament for English constituencies Category:Critics of the European Union Category:People from Farnborough, London Category:People educated at Dulwich College Category:Leaders of the United Kingdom Independence Party Category:British libertarians Category:UK Independence Party MEPs Category:MEPs for the United Kingdom 1999–2004 Category:MEPs for the United Kingdom 2004–2009 Category:MEPs for the United Kingdom 2009–2014 Category:Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents Category:Testicular cancer survivors

br:Nigel Farage cs:Nigel Farage cy:Nigel Farage de:Nigel Farage et:Nigel Farage el:Νάιτζελ Φάρατζ es:Nigel Farage eo:Nigel Farage fr:Nigel Farage it:Nigel Farage nl:Nigel Farage no:Nigel Farage pl:Nigel Farage ro:Nigel Farage simple:Nigel Farage fi:Nigel Farage sv:Nigel Farage

Honorific-prefix	His Excellency
Name	José Manuel Barroso
Office	President of the European Commission
Vicepresident	Margot WallströmCatherine Ashton
Term start	22 November 2004
Predecessor	Romano Prodi
Office1	Prime Minister of Portugal
President1	Jorge Sampaio
Term start1	6 April 2002
Term end1	17 July 2004
Predecessor1	António Guterres
Successor1	Pedro Santana Lopes
Birth date	March 23, 1956
Birth place	Lisbon, Portugal
Party	Portuguese Workers' Communist Party (Before 1976)Social Democratic Party (1976–present)
Spouse	Maria Sousa Uva
Children	LuísGuilhermeFrancisco
Alma mater	University of LisbonEuropean University InstituteUniversity of GenevaGeorgetown University
Signature	Barroso signature.svg
Website	Official websiteOfficial Media Gallery }}

José Manuel Durão Barroso (; born 23 March 1956) is the 11th and current President of the European Commission and a Portuguese politician. He served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 6 April 2002 to 17 July 2004.

Academic career[link]

Durão Barroso (as he is known in Portugal) graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon and has an MSc in Economic and Social Sciences from the University of Geneva (Institut Européen de l'Université de Genève) in Switzerland. His academic career continued as an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon. He did research for a PhD at Georgetown University and Georgetown's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in Washington, D.C. but his CV does not list any doctoral degree (except honorary). He is a 1998 graduate of the Georgetown Leadership Seminar. Back in Lisbon, Barroso became Director of the Department for International Relations at Lusíada University (Universidade Lusíada). He received honorary degrees from many Universities listed under honorary degrees.

Early political career[link]

Barroso's political activity began in his late teens, during the Estado Novo regime in Portugal, before the Carnation Revolution of 25 April 1974. In his college days, he was one of the leaders of the underground Maoist MRPP (Reorganising Movement of the Proletariat Party, later PCTP/MRPP, Communist Party of the Portuguese Workers/Revolutionary Movement of the Portuguese Proletariat). In an interview with the newspaper ''Expresso'', he said that he had joined MRPP to fight the only other student body movement, also underground, which was controlled by the Portuguese Communist Party. Despite this justification there is a very famous political 1976 interview recorded by the Portuguese state-run television channel — RTP, in which Barroso, as a politically minded student during the post-Carnation Revolution turmoil known as PREC, criticises the bourgeois education system which "throws students against workers and workers against students", showing clear left-wing and Maoist inclinations. In December 1980, Barroso joined the right-of-centre PPD (Democratic Popular Party, later PPD/PSD-Social Democratic Party), where he remains to the present day.

In 1985, under the PSD government of Aníbal Cavaco Silva (now President of Portugal), Barroso was named Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs. In 1987 he became a member of the same government as he was elevated to Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (answering to the Minister of Foreign Affairs), a post he was to hold for the next five years. In this capacity he was the driving force behind the Bicesse Accords of 1990, which led to a temporary armistice in the Angolan Civil War between the ruling MPLA and the opposition UNITA. He also supported independence for East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, then a province of Indonesia by force. In 1992, Barroso was promoted to the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, and served in this capacity until the defeat of the PSD in the 1995 general election.

Prime Minister of Portugal[link]

In opposition, Barroso was elected to the Assembly of the Republic in 1995 as a representative for Lisbon. There, he became chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. In 1999 he was elected president of his political party, PSD, succeeding Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (a professor of law), and thus became Leader of the Opposition. Parliamentary elections in 2002 gave the PSD enough seats to form a coalition government with the right-wing Portuguese People's Party, and Barroso subsequently became Prime Minister of Portugal on 6 April 2002. As Prime Minister, facing a growing budget deficit, he made a number of difficult decisions and adopted strict reforms. He vowed to reduce public expenditure, which made him unpopular among leftists and public servants.. His purpose was to lower the public budget deficit to a 3% target (according to the demands of EU rules), and official data during the 2002–2004 period stated that the target was being attained. Barroso did not finish his term as he had been nominated as President of the European Commission on 5 July 2004. Barroso arranged with Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio to nominate Pedro Santana Lopes as a substitute Prime Minister of Portugal. Santana Lopes led the PSD/PP coalition for a few months until early 2005, when new elections were called. When the Portuguese Socialist Party won the elections it produced an estimation that by the end of the year the budget deficit would reach 6.1%, which it used to criticise Barroso's and Santana Lopes's economic policies.

In 2003, Barroso hosted U.S President George W. Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar in the Portuguese island of Terceira, in the Azores. The four leaders finalised the controversial US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq. Under Barroso's leadership, Portugal became part of the "coalition of the willing" for the invasion and occupation of Iraq, sending non-combat troops.

President of the European Commission[link]

In 2004, the proposed European Constitution and now the Treaty of Lisbon included a provision that the choice of President must take into account the result of Parliamentary elections and the candidate supported by the victorious Europarty in particular. That provision was not in force in the nomination in 2004, but the centre-right European People's Party (EPP), who won the elections, pressured for a candidate from its own ranks. In the end, José Manuel Barroso, the EPP candidate, was chosen by the European Council.

On the same basis, the EPP again endorsed Barroso for a second term during the 2009 European election campaign and, after the EPP again won the elections, was able to secure his nomination by the European Council on 17 June 2009. On 3 September 2009, Barroso unveiled his manifesto for his second term. On 16 September 2009, Barroso was re-elected by the European Parliament for another five years. If he completes his second term he will become only the second Commission president to serve two terms, after Jacques Delors.

During his first presidency, the following important issues were on the Commission's agenda:

Turkey applying for EU membership

The reform of the institutions (Treaty of Lisbon)

The Bolkestein directive, aimed at creating a single market for services within the EU

Lisbon Strategy

Galileo positioning system

Doha Development Agenda negotiations

European Institute of Innovation and Technology

An EU climate change package

One of his first tasks since being re-elected was a visit to Ireland to persuade Irish citizens to approve the Treaty of Lisbon in the country's second referendum due to be held the following month. Barroso was greeted by Irish Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea and Peter Power, the Minister of State for Overseas Development, as he got off his plane at Shannon Airport on the morning of 19 September 2009 before briefly meeting with the joint committee of the Oireachtas and meeting and greeting people at functions in Limerick's City Hall, University of Limerick (UL) and the Savoy Hotel. He told ''The Irish Times'' in an interview referenced internationally by Reuters that he had been asked if Ireland would split from the European Union. He also launched a €14.8 million grant for former workers at Dell's Limerick plant, described as "conveniently opportune" by former Member of the European Parliament and anti-Lisbonite Patricia McKenna.

Controversies[link]

In 2005 ''Die Welt'' reported that Barroso had spent a week on the yacht of the Greek shipping billionaire Spiro Latsis. It emerged soon afterwards that this had occurred only a month before the Commission approved 10 million euros of Greek state aid for Latsis's shipping company – though the state aid decision had been taken by the previous European Commission before Barroso took up his post. In response to this revelation, Nigel Farage MEP of the UK Independence Party persuaded around 75 MEPs from across the political spectrum to back a motion of no confidence in Barroso, so as to compel him to appear before the European Parliament to be questioned on the matter. The motion was tabled on 12 May 2005, and Barroso appeared before Parliament as required at a debate on 26 May 2005. The motion itself was heavily defeated.

In response to criticism for his choice of a less fuel efficient Volkswagen Touareg, amid EU legislation of targets drastically to reduce car emissions, Barroso dismissed this as "overzealous moralism".

In April 2008, amid sharp food price rises and mounting food vs fuel concerns, Barroso insisted that biofuel use was "not significant" in pushing up food prices. The following month, he announced a study that would look into the issue. The backdoor approval of the GE potato, by President Barroso, has met a wave of strong opposition from EU member-states. The governments of Greece, Austria, Luxembourg, Italy, Hungary and France have all publicly announced that they will not allow the GE potato to be grown in their countries.

Personal life[link]

José Manuel Durão Barroso is the son of Luís António Saraiva Barroso and his wife Maria Elisabete de Freitas Durão. In 1980 he married Maria Margarida Pinto Ribeiro de Sousa Uva, with whom he has three sons: Luís, Guilherme, and Francisco de Sousa Uva Durão Barroso.

Apart from Portuguese, Barroso is fluent in French, speaks Spanish and English and has taken a course to acquire a basic knowledge of German.

Honours [link]

Barroso holds over twenty decorations, including.

Portugal's Gra-Cruz da Ordem Militar de Cristo in 1996;

Winner of the Casa da Imprensa prize in the area of politics in 1992

Named Global Leader for Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum in 1993

Chosen Personality of the Year in 1991 and 2004 by the Foreign Press Association in Portugal

Given “Medalla de la Universidad de Alcala de Henares” and “Medalla de Oro de la Ciudad de Zamora”, Spain, 2005

Golden Medal: The Bell Celebration – Message to the United Europe, from the Ferdinan Martinengo Company, Slovakia, 2006

EFR-Business Week Award from Erasmus University Rotterdam, 2006.

Honorary Citizen of Rio de Janeiro, June 2006.

"European of the Year" award by European Voice newspaper, November 2006.

Awarded Honorary HEC diploma, Paris, December 2006.

Special Prize, Business Centre Club, Poland, February 2007; Gold Medal of the city of Lamego, Portugal, April 2007;

Transatlantic Leadership Prize, European Institute, Washington DC, April 2007;

Honorary Citizen of Delphi and Golden Medal of the "Amfiktyons", Delphi, Greece, July 2007;

Academic Title EBAPE – FGV, for the relevant contribution and services towards the study and practice in Administration - Getulio Vargas Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, August 2007

Conde de Barcelona International Prize from the Conde de Barcelona Foundation, Barcelona, November 2007.

Honorary Medal and Honorary Diploma of the City of Nicosia, Nicosia, January 2008.

Honorary Member, Academia Portuguesa da História, Lisbon, March 2008.

State Medal "Stara Planina" I Degree, Bulgaria, March 2008.

"Prémio Rotary da Paz", Rotary International Distrito 1960 Portugal, Lisbon, April 2008; "Chave de Honra da Cidade de Lisboa", Lisbon, May 2008.

Confraria Queijo S. Jorge, Acores, May 2008.

Ciudadino Andino Honorifico, Lima, Peru, May 2008.

"Transatlantic Business Award", American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union, Brussels, May 2008.

Confraria vinho do Porto, Porto, June 2008.

Orden de la Cruz de Terra Mariana, Primera clase, Tallinn, February 2009.

Gold Medal of the Royal Institute of European Studies, Royal Institute of European Studies Madrid, March 2009.

Gold Medal of the Hellenic Parliament, Athens, April 2009.

Medal of Honour and Benefaction of the City of Athens, Athens, April 2009.

European Excellence Award, by the Government Council of the Community of Madrid, May 2009.

Prix European of the Year, The European Movement in Denmark, Copenhagen, May 2009.

Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the Great, Vilnius, June 2009.

Laureate of the Quadriga Prize 2009 - United for the Better, Berlin, October 2009

Collar of the Order "pro Merito Melitensi", the Order of Malta, Rome, May 2010.

Medal of Merit from the Federação das Associações Portuguesas e Luso-brasileiras, Brazil, July 2010.

"Man of the Year 2009 of Central and Eastern Europe", Krynica, September 2010.

Great Collar of the Order of Timor-Leste, Brussels, October 2010.

Golden Victoria "European of the Year 2010" award by the Union of German Magazine Publishers VDZ, Berlin, November 2010.

Collar of the European Merit Foundation, Luxembourg, November 2010.

the "Steiger" Award 2011, Bochum, Germany, March 2011.

Honorary Degrees [link]

Honorary Degree from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island, 2005

Honorary Degree in Humanities from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.

Honorary Degree in Political Science from the University of Genoa, Italy, 2006

Honorary Degree in Law from Kobe University, Japan, April 2006.

Honorary Doctorate in Social and Human Sciences from Candido Mendes University, Rio de Janeiro, June 2006.

Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science, University of Edinburgh, November 2006.

Honorary Degree from the Economics Faculty of the "La Sapienza" University of Rome, January 2007

Honorary doctorate at Warsaw School of Economics, Warsaw, November 2007.

Doctor Honoris Causa degree at the Pontifical Catholic University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, March 2008.

Honorary degree of Doctor of Laws, University of Liverpool, July 2008; "Prémio Política e Responsabilidade Social", Fundação Luso-Brasileira, Lisbon, October 2008.

Honorary Degree of Doctor, Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, Nice, November 2008.

Doctor Honoris Causa, Tomas Bata University, Zlin, Czech Republic, April 2009.

Honorary doctorate of the Chemnitz University of Technology, Chemnitz, May 2009.

Honorary doctorate of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, USA, September 2009.

Doctor Honoris Causa, University Estácio de Sá, Rio de Janeiro, July 2010.

Doctorate Honoris Causa, Łódź University, Poland, October 2010.

Doctorate Honoris Causa, University of Geneva, October 2010.

Doctorate Honoris Causa, University of Bucharest, November 2010.

Honorary Doctorate, Baku State University, Azerbaijan, January 2011.

Honorary Doctorate, Luiss Guido Carli University, Rome, March 2011.

Honorary Doctorate, Ghent University, March 2011.

See also[link]

President of the European Commission

European Union law

Notes[link]

External links[link]

President José Manuel Barroso – Official Media Gallery

European Commission – President José Manuel Barroso

tellBarroso.eu – a web service for telling Barroso: "What can Europe do for you?"

|- |- |- |-

Category:1956 births Category:Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni Category:Living people Category:Maoism Category:People from Lisbon Category:Politicians of the European People's Party Category:Portuguese European Commissioners Category:Portuguese foreign ministers Category:Portuguese Roman Catholics Category:Presidents of the European Commission Category:Prime Ministers of Portugal Category:Portuguese Workers' Communist Party politicians Category:Social Democratic Party (Portugal) politicians Category:Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 1st Class Category:University of Lisbon alumni

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name	First State
background	group_or_band
origin	Dordrecht, South Holland, Netherlands, Johannesburg, South Africa
genre	Trance, Progressive House
occupation	DJ, Producer, Remixer
years active	2003 - present
label	Magik Muzik, First State Music, Black Hole Recordings
website	www.firststatemusic.com
current members	Sander van Dien , Shane Halcon
past members	Ralph Barendse
notable instruments	}}

First State is a project of Sander van Dien and Shane Halcon. First State has released numerous singles, remixes and albums and compilations, most of which gained recognition within the world wide Trance scene. Ralphie B, left the group in 2009 and Shane Halcon joined soon after.

In 2010, the record label First State Music was announced together with First State Deep and First State House. Three new partner labels of Black Hole Recordings. First State Music is owned and managed by Sander van Dien and Shane Halcon.

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

2007 Time Frame

2010 Changing Lanes

Mix Compilations[link]

First State's Crossroads Yearmix 2010

The Whole Nine Yards

Singles/EPs[link]

"Sacred"

"First State" [In Trance We Trust]

"Falling"

"Rhapsody"

"Sierra Nevada"

"Evergreen"

"Your Own Way"

"Off The Radar"

"My Sanctuary"

"Exeo"

"Surrounds Me" (Feat. Elliot Johns)

"Cape Point"

"Cross The Line" (Feat. Relyk)

"Mojave"

"Reverie" (Feat. Sarah Howells)

"Butterfly Effect"

"Breathe On Me" (Feat. Elliot Johns)

"Primate"

"As You Were"

"Skies On Fire" (feat. Sarah Howells)

"Maze" (feat. Tyler Sherritt)

Aliases

"Devoid – Cremona / Arella"

"Sander van Dien – Terms"

"Sander van Dien - Aurora"

"OneWorld - Isla Blanca / Lingus"

"OneWorld - Green Bay"

"OneWorld - The One That Got Away"

Co-productions

"Shane Halcon - North Gate" (Intuition Recordings)

"Shane Halcon - Solid Ground" (Intuition Recordings)

"Shane Halcon - Valletta" (Intuition Recordings)

"Shane Halcon - Must Have Fallen" (feat Tiff Lacey) (First State Music)

"First State ft Tyler Sherritt - Maze" (Shane Halcon Remix) (Magik Muzik)

Remixes[link]

2005 - Solar Stone "Eastern Sea" (First State Remix) (Solaris Recordings)

2006 - Midway "Cobra" (First State’s First Aid Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2007 - Tiësto "Ten Seconds Before Sunrise" (First State Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2008 - 4 Strings "Catch A Fall" (First State Remix) (Maelstrom Records)

2008 - Tiesto "Ten Seconds Before Sunrise" (First State's A Global Taste Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2008 - Armin van Buuren "Unforgivable" (First State Remix) (Armada Music)

2009 - Bobina Feat. Tiff Lacey "Where Did You Go?" (First State Remix) (World Club Music)

2009 - Vimana "We Came" (First State Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2009 - Ton TB "Dream Machine" (First State Remix) (In Trance We Trust (label))

2009 - First State feat. Sarah Howells "Brave" (First State's Crossroads Remix) (Magik Muzik)

2009 - 3 Drives "Greece 2000" (Sander van Dien Remix) (Massive Drive Recordings)

2009 - Jonas Steur Feat. Julie Thompson "Cold Winds" (First State Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2009 - Mac & Mac "Solid Session" (First State Remix) (Magik Muzik)

2009 - Filo & Peri "Ashley" (First State Remix) (Vandit)

2009 - Dash Berlin feat. Emma Hewitt "Waiting" (First State Remix) (Aropa Records)

2010 - Dash Berlin feat. Solid Sessions "Janeiro" (First State Remix) (Aropa Records)

2010 - Tiesto feat. Tegan & Sara "Feel It In My Bones" (First State Remix) (Musical Freedom)

2010 - George Acosta feat. Fisher "Love Rain Down" (First State Remix) (SongBird)

2010 - Robbie Rivera feat. Lizzy Curious "Departures" (First State Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2011 - Blake Lewis "Till We See The Sun" (First State Remix) (Black Hole Recordings)

2011 - First State feat. Sarah Howells "Reverie" (First State's Pounding Club Mix) (Magik Muzik)

2011 - Jason van Wyk & Audien "Someday" (First State Remix) (First State Music)

2011 - Jes "It's Too Late" (First State Remix) (Magik Muzik)

External links[link]

Official Homepage (English)

Official Twitter

Myspace

Official YouTube

Integrity AM (First State's Booking Management)

last.fm

Category:Dutch DJs Category:South African DJs Category:Dutch trance music groups Category:Remixers Category:1981 births Category:1985 births Category:Club DJs Category:Dutch record producers Category:People from Dordrecht Category:People from Johannesburg Category:Living people

de:First State

The Van Rompuy I Government was the federal government of Belgium from 30 December 2008 until 15 November 2009. Herman Van Rompuy was nominated as the first President of the European Council and resigned shortly after as Premier. It took office when the Flemish Christian Democrat Herman Van Rompuy (Christian Democratic and Flemish, CD&V;) was sworn in as Prime Minister after the Leterme I Government fell on 22 December 2008.

On 18 December 2008, Yves Leterme offered his government's resignation to King Albert after a scandal erupted surrounding the investigation of the sale of the failing Fortis bank to BNP Paribas. Leterme, Jo Vandeurzen, and Didier Reynders were accused of violating the separation of powers by trying to influence the Court of Appeals and of exerting improper influence by the First Chairman of the Court of Cassation. Three days later the resignation was accepted by the king.

To be official, the Van Rompuy I government needed a vote of confidence from the Chamber of Representatives. It received the vote of confidence on 2 January 2009.

The government was succeeded on November 24, 2009 by the Leterme II Government.

Composition[link]

The Van Rompuy I Government comprises 15 ministers and seven secretaries of state. Its initial composition is as follows:

Government reshuffle[link]

On July 17, 2009, as a consequence of the regional elections, the government was reshuffled:

Karel de Gucht (VLD), who was appointed European Commissioner was succeeded by Yves Leterme (CD&V;) as minister of Foreign Affairs

Guido De Padt (VLD) was replaced as minister of the interior by Annemie Turtelboom (VLD); De Padt was appointed government commissioner for the internal audit of the federal government.

Guy Vanhengel (VLD) entered the government as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Budget

Melchior Wathelet jr. stayed on as state secretary for the budget but received the competences Asylum and immigration which were previously held by Minister Turtelboom.

Marie Arena (PS) was replaced as minister of Pensions and Large Cities by Michel Daerden

Julie Fernandez-Fernandez (PS) was replaced as state secretary for Disabled Persons by Jean-Marc Delizée (PS). Delizée in turn was replaced as state secretary for the Fight against Poverty by Philippe Courard (PS). Courard also received the competences of social integration from Arena.

See also[link]

2007–2011 Belgian political crisis

References[link]

Category:Belgian governments Category:2008 establishments in Belgium Category:2009 disestablishments

de:Regierung Van Rompuy fr:Gouvernement Van Rompuy nl:Regering-Van Rompuy