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Charles Michel to succeed Donald Tusk as European Council president

20:43 02/07/2019

Belgium's outgoing prime minister Charles Michel will succeed Donald Tusk as the new president of the European Council, it was announced on Tuesday.

Michel, who is 43, will be the European Council's youngest president and the second Belgian after Herman Van Rompuy (2009-2014) to occupy the role since it was created a decade ago.

His name had circulating for several weeks as a potential candidate for the job and the Belgian PM's supporters included French president Emmanuel Macron.

Describing himself as "a committed European, but not a naive and smug European", Michel is currently Belgium's caretaker prime minister while negotiations continue to form a new federal government.

He grew up in a political family - his father Louis was a party leader, deputy prime minister and European commissioner.

Michel studied law at ULB and the University of Amsterdam and became a local councillor in Walloon Brabant at the age of just 18. Five years later, he became one of Belgium's youngest-ever members of parliament.

His five-year term presiding over the European Council will begin on 1 December.

Written by The Bulletin

Comments

Anon3

I wonder who will be pulling his strings in his newest 'pistonné' post. It isn't this appointment that is going to prove to EU citizens that the EC isn't just a club for self-serving members and their families/friends.

Jul 3, 2019 10:27