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France has urged the European Commission’s antitrust regulator to reconsider the nomination for a key position of a former US Justice Department economist who previously worked as an adviser to tech giants such as Apple and Amazon.
Margrethe Vestager, the European Union’s competition commissioner, announced on Tuesday the selection of Fiona Scott Morton, a former Obama administration official and Yale University professor, as the new chief economist in the Directorate-General for Competition.
In a coordinated series of tweets late Thursday evening, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said she expressed “Amazement” at the proposed appointment, while Jean-Noel Barrot, Junior Minister for Digital Affairs, said question The move “at a time when Europe is embarking on the world’s most ambitious digital regulation”.
“Digital regulation is a major issue for France and Europe,” Colonna said, urging the committee to “reconsider” her candidacy.
The job is impactful because the person advises the competition commissioner on a wide range of economic policies, including state aid and mergers and acquisitions. Scott Morton, a US citizen, will be the first non-European appointed to the position. It is scheduled to start on September 1.
The nomination coincides with Brussels bolstering its legal arsenal to oversee tech giants with a slew of new laws and enforcement measures. Earlier this year, Vestager threatened to break up Google’s EU business, citing anti-competitive behaviour. Apple, Microsoft and Meta are also under scrutiny.
Scott Morton is expected to oversee market analysis on antitrust and cartel issues and influence broader competition policy.
It will also contribute to deliberations on industrial policy as some member states such as France put pressure on the Commission to further relax state aid rules to help the bloc compete with the United States, where huge subsidies are given to companies in green technologies and semiconductors.
During Emmanuel Macron’s presidency, France pushed for Europe to develop its “strategic autonomy,” a term it uses to mean that the region should not depend on outside powers such as the United States or China for its defense or economic needs.
This situation partly explains Paris’ reticence about an American parachuting into an important site in the European Union, a French official said, as well as concern about Scott Morton’s previous advisory work for technology companies. The official said they intend to demand more transparency on the matter.
Although some of her consulting work for large tech groups occurred several years ago, Morton Scott was recently an “economist” acting on behalf of Microsoft regarding its proposed acquisition of video game maker Activision Blizzard. Competition regulators in the US and UK have challenged the deal and legal wrangling continues.
France’s concerns were echoed on Friday by the leaders of the European Parliament’s four main political groups, who wrote a letter to Vestager asking her to “reverse the decision”. They argued that a non-European person should not be considered “for such a high-ranking and strategic position” and highlighted their “potential conflict of interest”.
In the statement announcing Scott Morton’s nomination, the committee commended her “distinguished academic background and decades of experience in economic analysis and competition policy” and said she was “highly suited to advising on economic aspects of policy development and enforcement of competition rules.” in the European Union”.
Benjamin Haddad, a French politician from Macron’s party, asked, “Wasn’t there a European citizen with the required skills?”
The spat comes at a critical time for Vestager, who announced her candidacy to head the European Investment Bank in the fall – a decision made by national capitals. Paris is leaning towards supporting a Spanish candidate for the job.
Scott Morton declined to comment on Friday.
The European Commission said the decision was taken in February to open the position to non-EU candidates due to the specific skills required.
Eleven applicants were considered before selecting Scott Morton, who was described by the panel as the most qualified candidate for the position.
The committee examined potential conflicts of interest and decided that Scott Morton should not work on the cases she had previously worked on. In the first two years of her term, she also had to recuse herself from cases involving the companies to which she was a consultant.
“The decision has been taken. We see no grounds for reconsideration,” the commission said.
Additional reporting by Ian Johnston in Brussels
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