Because of vaccine deal

Lobbyist takes legal action against von der Leyen

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

(Bild: APA/AFP/Daniel MIHAILESCU)

A Belgian lobbyist wants to legally prevent a second term in office for EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. He has therefore filed an urgent appeal against her vaccine deal, which the politician negotiated with the Pfizer boss during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Frédéric Baldan's motion, this was done "without any mandate" from the member states. He even accuses the head of the EU of having "destroyed public documents" that would prove the agreements. For example, a journalist had unsuccessfully demanded to obtain the text messages between von der Leyen and Pfizer boss Bourla. The Brussels authority said at the time that it had not archived the text messages.

Decision before June 27
The Belgian's lawyer called on the conservative European People's Party (EPP) to withdraw its support for von der Leyen. However, the party group, which also includes the ÖVP, did not initially comment when asked. It had become the strongest force in the European elections with von der Leyen as its lead candidate. Diplomats expect the former German defense minister to receive broad backing at the summit next week anyway.

The judge in charge said at the end of the hearing that there would be a decision on the application "before June 27". That would be before the start of the EU summit, at which five more years for von der Leyen at the helm will be discussed.

Costs not known
The European Public Prosecutor's Office is currently also investigating the purchase of coronavirus vaccines due to the "extremely high public interest". The Commission purchased millions of doses of vaccines for the member states during the pandemic, but the contracts with the manufacturers and the costs were never made public.