EP Rules of Procedure, Annex XVI point 1(a): guidelines for the approval of the Commission; interpretation

The Committee on Constitutional Affairs, which had been consulted on the application of paragraph 1(a) of Annex XVI to the Rules of Procedure, provided the following interpretation on that provision:

'Scrutiny of the declaration of financial interests of a Commissioner-designate by the committee responsible for legal affairs consists not only in verifying that the declaration has been duly completed but also in assessing whether a conflict of interests may be inferred from the content of the declaration. It is then for the committee responsible for the hearing to decide whether or not it requires further information from the Commissioner-designate.'