I gave a talk last month on influencing the new Commission’s agenda.
My main message was that the direction of travel (in policy terms) was set and we are now down to the end game of refinement.
I’m sure I saw some faces go pale.
In the main, a few core documents lay out where things are going for the next 5 years.
The key directions was influenced by some decisions taken in 2023 and firmed up in 2024.
A lot of the important framing documents for the next 5 years are set in stone.
And, only a few more things need to be finalized. This is more dotting I’s and crossing T’s stage.
What needs to be finished off is below.
The real challenge will be for exhausted officials to re-invent themselves and come up with new ideas.
Fresh thinking can’t be beaten out of policy officials. There are after all not that many policy staff in the Commission. And, indeed I’m struck by how many officials are finding it hard to accept the new Commission’s lines to take on issues.
And, the limited staff/financial resources will make it harder to deliver on the implementation of thousands of pieces of secondary legislation to deliver on the last Commission’s legislative output.
In the talk I outlined some simple actions you can take to get what you taken up. It takes a long term perspective, persistence, and being trusted. Not impossible but rare commodities in Brussels.