Denmark’s Margrethe Vestager has been a driving force behind the European Commission’s agenda, particularly as competition commissioner. She speaks to Global Conversation ahead of her handover.
Margrethe Vestager One of the most powerful figures in the EU, the vice-president of the European Commission has a reputation for hitting. US tech giants hit with billions of euro finesAn action that earned her the nickname “tax lady” from former US President Donald Trump. The Dane will soon say goodbye to Brussels after nearly a decade in charge of competition and digital policy. Euronews Witness reporter Maia de la Baume We spoke with her about her tenure and the great challenges facing the European Union now and in the future.
This would include ensuring greater representation of women in parliament and committees. It has retreated since the June elections.. Vestager describes it as “unmasking the lack of commitment to equal opportunities and gender equality”, but she praises Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for pressuring member states to do more. “Every prime minister will say that I formed my government. She only asked for two people to choose from. And I think it’s really unfortunate that member states didn’t follow through and give her the opportunity to create the best possible commission and achieve gender equality, because we were making progress. We also showed visually that a commission that has achieved gender equality can do unprecedented things, as it has done in this mandate under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen,” she says.
Far Right vs Rule of Law
Limiting the far right’s influence on the EU’s rule of law should also be a priority for pro-institution politicians. Following the huge victories of hard-line nationalist parties in recent European elections,Vestager believes. “The good thing about where we are now is that we have legislation in place,” she says. “We have really strong legislation, like the Digital Markets Act, which ensures that the market is open and fair, and the Services Act, which preserves freedom of speech while ensuring that services are safe. And I think that there’s a critical balance here. So even if the government is hostile to some of the efforts, you know, it’s the law. And we’re a union that’s based on the rule of law. So I think it’s going to be very, very difficult to actually change the course that we’ve taken to services that are actually services, and not addictive things that make life harder or are used to undermine our democracy.”
Future Challenges
Vestager also recognizes the challenges to democracy and society as a whole. Big Tech and Artificial Intelligence And here’s my advice to the person who’s going to replace the Competition and Digital Commissioner: “I’m not a competition lawyer, I was trained as an economist and I’ve been in politics my whole life. And what I’ve tried to do is not to be too intimidated or impressed by all the smart lawyers around me, but to push forward what I think is really important. The fans are in the market that technology serves the consumer, not the other way around. That market needs to be open and competitive. You know, if you use language that you can understand, other people often can understand it too, and they’ll support your efforts to make sure that we as consumers are well served by the market.”
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