EU: The incoming president of the European Commission, Mr José Manuel Barroso, has moved towards a compromise with the European Parliament over the appointment of Mr Rocco Buttiglione as Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner. During meetings with parliamentary leaders yesterday, Mr Barroso outlined a number of ideas for resolving the dispute over Mr Buttiglione's conservative views on homosexuality, marriage and immigration, writes Denis Staunton in Brussels
Neither Mr Barroso nor the MEPs revealed details of the proposals but both sides described yesterday's talks as fruitful.
The leader of the Socialist group, Mr Martin Schulz, said that Mr Barroso had shown a willingness to take note of MEPs' views on Mr Buttiglione.
"There was an attempt to find a constructive solution and I hope we will be able to find a constructive solution, but that depends on the different parties, including Buttiglione himself," he said.
The European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee last week rejected Mr Buttiglione's nomination after he described homosexuality as sinful and said that the purpose of marriage was for women to have children under the protection of a man.
Mr Schulz said yesterday that the Socialist group regarded Mr Buttiglione's statements as unacceptable and that the parliamentary committee's rejection must have consequences. Socialists, Liberals and Greens have threatened to vote down Mr Barroso's entire Commission next week unless Mr Buttiglione is removed from the justice post.
The shape of a possible compromise remains unclear, but Commission sources suggest that, although Mr Barroso has become impatient with Mr Buttiglione's outbursts, he is reluctant to sack the commissioner-designate or to move him to a new portfolio.
Mr Barroso does not share the Italian conservative's views on gays and marriage, but he regards them as legitimate and fears that too harsh a response to Mr Buttiglione could alienate millions of Catholics in Europe.
Mr Barroso acknowledges he must take some action to placate the angry MEPs, and his advisers are considering a number of possible options. They include the introduction of an anti-discrimination directive, which would oblige EU member-states to protect the rights of gays and lesbians.
Another option is to establish a Commission working group on civil rights that could be chaired by Mr Barroso. A third option under discussion in Brussels yesterday is to remove the civil rights agenda from Mr Buttiglione's portfolio.
Mr Barroso hopes to find an agreed solution to the dispute over Mr Buttiglione by the time he meets the leaders of all the European Parliament's political groups tomorrow.