Jacques Barrot

Jacques Barrot
European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security
In office
9 May 2008  9 February 2010
President José Manuel Barroso
Preceded by Franco Frattini
Succeeded by Viviane Reding (Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship)
Cecilia Malmström (Home Affairs)
European Commissioner for Transport
In office
22 November 2004  9 May 2008
President José Manuel Barroso
Preceded by Loyola de Palacio (Energy and Transport)
Succeeded by Antonio Tajani
European Commissioner for Regional Policy
In office
1 April 2004  22 November 2004
President Romano Prodi
Preceded by Michel Barnier
Succeeded by Danuta Hübner
Member of the Constitutional Council of France
In office
2010–2014
President Jean-Louis Debré
Preceded by Pierre Joxe
Succeeded by Lionel Jospin
Personal details
Born 3 February 1937
Yssingeaux, France
Died 3 December 2014 (aged 77)
Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
Nationality French
Political party Union for French Democracy (Before 2002)
Union for a Popular Movement (2002–2014)

Jacques Barrot (3 February 1937 – 3 December 2014) was a French politician, who served as European Commissioner for Justice between 2008 and 2010, after having spent four years serving as Commissioner for Transport (2004–2008) and Commissioner for Regional Policy for eight months (2004). He was also one of five vice-presidents of the 27-member Barroso Commission. He previously held various ministerial positions in France, and was a member of the right-wing political party UMP. He was officially approved in his post by the European Parliament on June 18, 2008 with a vote of 489 to 52 with 19 abstentions.[1]

Barrot was a European Commissioner between April 2004 and, serving as Commissioner for Regional Policy in the Prodi Commission before being selected as a Vice-President and Commissioner for Transport in the Barroso Commission.

He was convicted in a French court of embezzlement in 2000. The case involved the diverting of £2 million of government money to his party. He received an eight-month suspended prison sentence. His conviction was automatically erased by a 1995 presidential amnesty.[2]

Barrot was approved by the European Parliament in 2004 for Commissioner of Transport and made a Vice-President in the new Barroso Commission. However shortly after he began work, his previous conviction was revealed by Nigel Farage, MEP for Independence and Democracy. French President Jacques Chirac had granted him presidential amnesty, a fact the Commissioner did not disclose during his hearing to the Parliament. Despite calls from some MEPs for him to be suspended he remained in office after a large majority accepted legal opinion that Barrot was not legally required to disclose the amnesty.[3]

A major project during his term was the Galileo positioning system. Work on the system began a year before Barrot came to office and has developed since with the launch of the first satellite. However infighting within private sector partners may have been a potential setback to the project with Barrot favouring greater funds from the EU budget.[4] Other work includes recent guarantees of air passenger rights and the Single European Sky.

Barrot died on 3 December 2014.[5]

Political career

Governmental functions

Electoral mandates

National Assembly of France

General Council

Municipal Council

References

  1. Round-up of Tajani and Barrot hearings European Parliament, 18 June 2008
  2. Profile: Jacques Barrot BBC News, 22 November 2004
  3. "Barrot survives call to quit". The Guardian, 26 November 2004
  4. EU in u-turn on Galileo satellite funding EUobserver, May 16, 2007
  5. "La classe politique rend hommage à " l'humaniste " Jacques Barrot" (in French). Le Monde. 3 December 2014.

External links

Political offices
Preceded by
Pascal Lamy
French European Commissioner
2004–2010
Succeeded by
Michel Barnier
Preceded by
Michel Barnier
European Commissioner for Regional Policy
2004
Succeeded by
Danuta Hübner
Preceded by
Loyola de Palacio
as European Commissioner for Energy and Transport
European Commissioner for Transport
2004–2008
Succeeded by
Antonio Tajani
Preceded by
Franco Frattini
European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security
2008–2010
Succeeded by
Viviane Reding
as European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship
Succeeded by
Cecilia Malmström
as European Commissioner for Home Affairs