Commissioner McCreevy names his head of cabinet
Martin Power, a former Irish civil servant who also headed up the cabinet of outgoing Commissioner David Byrne, has accepted the post.
The outgoing Finance Minister, who will have the Internal Market portfolio, said he will select people for the other five senior and two administrative posts over the next few weeks.
Mr Power, originally from Bray, worked for a number of years in the Department of Finance in Dublin where he helped to establish Bord Gais.
He moved to Brussels 20 years ago and has spent much of his career working in the area of Internal Market where he was assistant to the director general from 1990 to 1995. He was involved in a number of areas including competition and state aid.
Mr McCreevy announcing the appointment said: “Mr Power brings a wealth of experience to the job, having served in various capacities in the EU Commission, including the Internal Market DG, over the past 20 years and as chef de cabinet to David Byrne.”
Mr Power said he was delighted with his new job and described Mr McCreevy’s portfolio as a very important one.
“This department is one of the leading ones in the Commission. Mr McCreevy will be very familiar with a lot of what is involved and he has the technical competence and excellent negotiating skills necessary,” he said.
After selecting his cabinet from the hundreds of CVs he has received, Mr McCreevy’s next job will
be to prepare for his interview with the European Commission which is likely to take place in the first week of October.
The Socialist group, the second largest in the parliament, is expected to give him a tough grilling on the policies he intends to pursue in his new role.
Dublin Labour MEP Proinsias de Rossa gave a foretaste of what is in store for the veteran Fianna Fáil politician when he berated the Taoiseach on the appointment in July.
The slimmed down Internal Market portfolio will focus on ensuring there are no barriers within the EU 25 to the trading of services which now make up 70% of the union’s turnover.
It ranges from banking and financial services to data protection and new accountancy standards.
The new Commission is due to take over on November 1.
