Current European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan may be moving to another portfolio when the new commission is formed.
It appears that the new Commission President, Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen, has offered the agriculture job to Poland’s candidate.
However, that candidate has withdrawn his candidacy because of his lack of experience in agriculture.
“Because we had not previously assumed the possibility of Poland becoming the Commissioner for Agriculture, I decided to withdraw my candidacy,” said Szczerski.
He added: “I believe that this portfolio is so important for Poland that it should be embraced by someone who has been engaged in agriculture all his life.”
He suggested the position should be filled by his compatriot Janusz Wojciechowski, a former vice-chairperson of the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, and currently a member of the European Court of Auditors.
It has been widely suggested that Commissioner Hogan could be in line to take the reins from Swedish politician Cecilia Malmström as European Commissioner for Trade.
The new commission can only be announced when all countries have nominated a commissioner. At present, Italy is the only country that has not done so.