The new Parliament will get down to business on July 20th, when its first duty will be to elect a President, Vice-Presidents and Committee Chairmen. It will then be faced with the tasks of organising public hearings, at which prospective Commissioners selected by the new Commission President Romano Prodi, will face a grilling from MEPs sitting in their respective specialised committees.

Parliament set up a Committee of Independent Experts to assess allegations of fraud and mismanagement within the outgoing Commission. That report was so critical that the Commission felt it had no option but to resign. Against this background, Commissioners-designate seem certain to take their public hearings before Parliament very seriously. The hearings are likely to be held in the first week of September with a confirmation vote by the full Parliament at the September plenary session.

In addition to examining the competence of candidates, who will be obliged to respond to a whole series of detailed written and oral questions, MEPs will be looking for signs of a willingness to take account of Parliament's concerns when formulating policy. This will be put to the test when the Commission draws up its legislative programme. But while the priorities will undoubtedly be ensuring the smooth operation of the single currency, preparing the way for the successful integration of the economies of the new member states from Eastern Europe, and post-war reconstruction in the Balkans, Mr Prodi was warned at the last session of the outgoing Parliament not to neglect the concerns of Europe's citizens, especially those living on the margins of society.