Cowen due to nominate next EU Commissioner
Already 10 countries have put forward their candidates and Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has just over two weeks to put together his new team.
He has told countries that he would like about half of his commissioners to be women and is asking countries like Ireland that has never nominated a woman to consider doing so now.
The bookies have former European Parliament president Pat Cox favourite for the job to replace Charlie McCreevy as next commissioner, followed by Fianna Fáil’s Eoin Ryan, who lost his European Parliament seat in June.
Further down the list is Máire Geoghegan Quinn, who is Ireland’s representative on the Court of Auditors, based in Luxembourg, where she is serving a second term.
Her appointment or that of Pat Cox would fill the important requirement of not creating a byelection and both could be assured of a decent portfolio.
Whether Mr Cowen made any promises to Mr Cox before his high profile, high energy involvement in the yes campaign is not known and the Limerick based consultant would not say even if he would be interested in the job.
Nominating Ms Geoghegan Quinn would allow the Taoiseach to appoint Green party chairman and deputy leader of the Seanad Dan Boyle to the auditors post. This could be agreed as part of the renewed programme for government and in advance of the Green party conference on October 10.
As a former Justice Minister she could be given a new portfolio on Fundamental Rights based on the Charter which is part of the Lisbon Treaty, and which is expected to be split off from the justice portfolio.
Other names in the mix are MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher, who gave up his seat in the Dáil to contest the European election and succeeded in keeping out Libertas founder Declan Ganley.
The Taoiseach could also find himself touting another Irish name, former President Mary Robinson for one of the EU’s top posts to be created under the Lisbon Treaty – EU President.
Commissioner Margot Walstrom, who with fellow women commissioners and MEPs has been campaigning for a woman to be given one of the senior jobs, said she was delighted to hear Mary Robinson’s name was now being mentioned as a candidate.
“It would be very, very good. She is a true European. This is about leadership and she has this quality. She is highly respected everywhere. It looks very very bad if we have the European Union represented only by men – it would be a shame,” she said.
Ms Robinson was UN High Commissioner for Human Rights after being President of Ireland and has since headed up her own organisation, Realising Rights: the Ethical Globalisation Initiative.
In August President Barack Obama awarded her America’s highest civilian honour, the Medal of Freedom as recognition of her work.
It was also awarded to the late Senator Edward Kennedy.
She is currently president of Oxfam International, and of the International Commission of Jurists, co-founder of the Council of Women World Leaders.
She is a member of the small and highly prestigious group of Elders that includes Nelson Mandela.
Former British prime minister Tony Blair is also being mentioned as a candidate for the EU president post but many small countries especially are opposed because of his contentious involvement in the Iraq war.
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