The leader of the European People's Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, said on Wednesday that the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, enjoys the support of the EPP for a second term in office and his personal support.

The deadline for submitting candidatures for the leading EPP candidates expired today and von der Leyen is the only candidate nominated by her national party, the CDU.

Her candidacy will be officially confirmed at an EPP summit in Bucharest on 6 and 7 March.

All parties in the EPP support von der Leyen except for the French Republicans, who want to distance themselves from her because they are dissatisfied with the work of the European Commission over the last five years, particularly its insistence on the European Green Deal and its neglect of farmers.

Many challenges

The EPP will focus on three priorities in its election campaign – the defence of democracy, prosperity and security.

Von der Leyen said that the European Commission has faced many challenges in its current term, from the coronavirus pandemic to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. All these challenges have been responded to appropriately, she said.

She went on to say that the EU’s competitiveness must be adapted to the new circumstances and prosperity in the EU must be increased and mentioned the climate targets.

Another important topic is security.

EU citizens want more Europe in the area of defence, they want us to invest more and better, and they want our undisputed transatlantic alignment to remain, but to become more European, she said.

Europe has a major demographic problem and a labour shortage

The future European Commission could for the first time have a Commissioner for Defence, whose portfolio would include the defence industry and joint procurement in this area.

About security, von der Leyen said that this should be seen in a broader sense, namely as security for citizens on the street, as protection against poverty and illness and as care for the elderly.

After its first meeting with von der Leyen following announcing her candidacy, the EPP Group organised a conference on the social market economy, which was also attended by European Commission Vice-Presidents Dubravka Suica and Margaritis Schinas.

In her speech, Suica said that Europe has a major demographic problem and a labour shortage. She will recommend that Member States make their pension systems more flexible so that older people can continue to work and volunteer so that their skills, wisdom and expertise are not lost.

Eight million European women outside the labour market

She said the EPP wants EU citizens to know that they can feel safe with the EPP and know what to expect.

“We believe that we need to defend our values, that we need to strengthen Europe in terms of security. This concerns the establishment of a defence department in the European Commission, more investment in defence by member states and economic competitiveness, as we are no longer competitive due to labour shortages. That is why it is important to use all the human capital available,” said Suica, stressing that eight million European women are not in the labour market because they must take care of their children or their elderly parents, even though they have a university degree.

“This should be a thing of the past. Women should not have to choose between a career and children,” she said.