Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has nominated Antonio Tajani to be the country's new member of the European Commission's college of commissioners.
Tajani was tapped on 8 May, the same day that his predecessor, Franco Frattini, resigned from the Commission to take up a post as Italy's foreign minister.
Frattini's portfolio of justice, freedom and security has been given to Commissioner Jacques Barrot, a Frenchman, who was given the portfolio when Frattini took a leave of absence from the Commission, on 14 March, to campaign in the recent Italian elections.
Tajani will be entrusted with the Commission's transport policy portfolio, a brief that Barrot currently holds in addition to the justice portfolio.
Commission President José Manuel Barroso promptly accepted Tajani's nomination.
However, before he can formally take up his duties, the new commissioner will have to face a public hearing in front of the European Parliament's transport committee, after which MEPs will indicate whether they believe Tajani is suitably qualified for his new role. The European Parliament does not, however, have the power to veto his appointment.
Tajani is a member of the European Parliament, and previously worked as a journalist and spokesperson for Berlusconi.
