Barroso ‘has confidence’ in commissioners

INCOMING EU Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso yesterday insisted he has full confidence in all the new commissioners.

However, Mr Barroso, who was visiting Dublin to meet Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, declined to discuss the controversy surrounding the nomination of Italian Commissioner Rocco Buttiglione.

Mr Buttiglione, who is due to take over the justice portfolio, has created a storm of protest over comments he has made about homosexuals and single mothers.