Thursday 10 December 2009

EU Council Secretary-General Pierre de Boissieu

When the Lisbon Treaty entered into force on 1 December 2009, the European Council and the Council of the European Union immediately took a number of decisions to put the treaty reforms into practice.

There are still a few implementing decisions we have not looked at here at Grahnlaw, among them the appointment of the Secretary-General of the Council,


Secretary-General


Article 240(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides for the organisation of the General Secretariat and the appointment of the Secretary-General (OJEU 9.5.2008 C 115/154):

Article 240(2) TFEU

2. The Council shall be assisted by a General Secretariat, under the responsibility of a Secretary-General appointed by the Council.

The Council shall decide on the organisation of the General Secretariat by a simple majority.



Formerly, the High Representative was also (formally) the Secretary-General of the Council (Javier Solana), but most of the day to day business of the Council was directed by Deputy Secretary-General.

The Lisbon Treaty created the new “double-hatted” High Representative and Vice-President of the Commission (Catherine Ashton), as well as the separate post of Secretary-General.


Appointment



The representatives of the EU member states agreed to appoint the Deputy Secretary-General and former French ambassador to the European Union Pierre de BOISSIEU Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union for about one and a half years (from 1 December 2009 until the day after the European Council meeting of June 2011):




Council Decision of 1 December 2009 appointing the Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union (2009/911/EU), published OJEU 9.12.2009 L 322/37.


Pierre de Boissieu


For those who prefer more than the powder-dry lines of the official decision, here are a few portraits of a powerful man directing the work of 3,500 employees outside the limelight:



Europolitics, Marc Paoloni: Pierre de Boissieu, a legend in Brussels (23 November 2009)



Le Figaro, Jean-Jacques Mével : Pierre de Boissieu, vigie de l’Europe (30 November 2009)



Swedish presidency of the EU Council: Secretary-General behind the scenes at the EU (undated)



Sur le chemin de la construction européenne, Samuel Faure : Pierre de Boissieu, un homme d’influence (9 December 2009)




Ralf Grahn



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