McCreevy plan to join Ryanair under scrutiny
Former commissioner wants to join low-cost airline, which has long been at odds with the Commission.
Charlie McCreevy, the European commissioner for the internal market from 2004 until February this year, is looking to become a non-executive director of the no-frills airline Ryanair.
A spokesman for the European Commission said yesterday (28 April) that McCreevy had asked the Commission for approval to join Ryanair and that the request had been referred to an ad hoc ethics committee to see if there were potential conflicts of interests.
He said the committee, which issues non-binding recommendations, would give its opinion in the coming weeks.
Under the Commission’s code of conduct, for a year after commissioners leave office, they have to seek approval for any posts they want to take up. They are expected not to use sensitive information obtained during their time as commissioners.
In 2009, Ryanair paid three non-executive directors €47,000. Any payment that McCreevy receives as a non-executive director would be deducted from the transitional allowance that he receives as an ex-commissioner for up to three years after leaving office. The allowance is around 55% of his previous salary of €243,000.
Controversial commissioner
McCreevy was a controversial commissioner – his non-interventionist approach to financial-services regulation was criticised after the credit-crunch. His choice of Ryanair will be just as controversial, though Ray MacSharry, an earlier European commissioner from Ireland, served on the airline’s board in 1996-2006.
Ryanair has been at odds with the Commission for years. The Commission blocked a bid by Ryanair to take over Irish flag-carrier Aer Lingus in 2007. In 2008, the Commission ordered Belgium to pay back what it ruled was illegal state aid given to the airline to help set up a hub at Charleroi airport. There was a brief rapprochement when Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary sided with those campaigning for Ireland to ratify the Lisbon treaty. But O’Leary was back to criticising the EU again earlier this month when volcanic ash stopped European air travel. He said that his company would not compensate customers stranded by the flight ban, in defiance of the law on passenger rights. He later reversed his position.
? The Commission has considered several other requests from former commissioners to take up new posts.
Meglena Kuneva, Bulgaria’s former commissioner for consumer policy, was cleared to work as a special envoy for the European Climate Foundation. But her request to join French bank BNP Paribas as a non-executive director has been referred to the Commission’s ethics committee.
The Commission cleared Leonard Orban, the former commissioner for multilingualism, to work for the Romanian president as an adviser on EU affairs. Pawel Samecki, the Pole who served as commissioner for regional policy, was cleared to advise the Polish foreign ministry on development policy.
Jacques Barrot, the former commissioner for transport and later justice and home affairs, has been given approval to join France’s Conseil Constitutionnel, the country’s highest constitutional authority.
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