According to the wishes of EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra is to become Commissioner for Climate Protection and thus also take over the specialist department of the resigned Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans. In a conversation on Tuesday, von der Leyen said that Hoekstra was very motivated for the office and very committed to the EU. He also has relevant professional experience.
“Following this discussion, I have decided to propose to the Council and the European Parliament that Mr Hoekstra be appointed Commissioner,” said the President of the Commission. He should be responsible for climate protection. The EU Parliament and the countries still have to approve the personnel.
On Friday, the Dutch government officially nominated the Christian Democrats to succeed Timmermans. This is the top candidate of the red-green alliance in the early parliamentary elections in the Netherlands in November. The social democrat was also the climate chief of the commission. It had already been decided that Slovak Maroš Šefčovič would become climate chief and EU vice. Hoekstra will be under the direction of Šefčovič, according to von der Leyen.
Hoekstra, 47, has been foreign minister and deputy prime minister since 2022 and previously finance minister. Von der Leyen said: “His government experience will be of great benefit in particular for European climate diplomacy in the run-up to COP28 and for climate finance and the implementation of climate-related legal instruments.” In the conversation, Hoekstra emphasized his commitment to continuing an ambitious climate policy and to maintaining a social balance in all necessary joint efforts on the way to climate neutrality, it said.