Post by fretslider on Jul 17, 2019 4:09:05 GMT -5
The stitch up is complete, Merkel's nominee managed to get 384 votes out of 750 in Europarl. But not everybody is happy with the process and the new commission president.
Even prominent party friends, such as Manfred Weber, have voiced suspicions in a small circle that Ms von der Leyen may not have the best grasp of issues outside of defence matters.
www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1154025/von-der-leyen-latest-eu-news-european-commission-president-resignation-statement
And where defence matters were concerned, von der Leyen's grasp was catastrophic...
Embarrassing
German soldiers used broomsticks painted black instead of guns during a joint Nato exercise last year due to severe equipment shortages, it has emerged. The incident took place during exercises for Nato's rapid response force, formed in reaction to the Ukraine crisis, which is supposed to be ready to deploy anywhere it is needed at very short notice.
Soldiers in the Panzergrenadierbataillon 371 took part in the exercises last September in Norway.
The troops were missing 31 per cent of their MG3 general-purpose machine guns, 41 per cent of their P8 handguns, and more than three-quarters of their Lucie night-vision devices.
General Harald Kujat, a former chief of staff of the German armed forces and chairman of the Nato military committee, described the latest incident as a "huge embarrassment".
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/germany/11420627/German-army-used-broomsticks-instead-of-guns-during-training.html
You see in the EU the price of failure is, er, a big reward
Definitely one of them
The German defence minister pledged to stand down from her Berlin job yesterday ahead of a knife-edge vote on her bid to replace Jean-Claude Juncker. MEPs will decide on whether Ms von der Leyen is fit to become the European Commission’s first female president this evening at the European Parliament in Strasbourg. While the future looks bright for her career in Europe, the German will followed by lingering scandals from her days in Berlin.
Tobias Linder, a member of the Bundestag and security spokesman for the Greens opposition party, said: “Whatever job Ms von der Leyen has in the future won’t change in anyway the fact that the committee will subpoena and question her.
“What happened in the past in the defence ministry under her leadership happened – and we will get to the bottom of that.”
The investigation into Ms von der Leyen’s defence ministry was sparked by the leak of internal reports from Germany’s federal audit office.
Germany’s governmental watchdog said there were a number of irregularities in hiring of external consultants by the ministry.
The private sector contracts at the heart of the scandal were said to cost €150 million a year.
The German defence ministry is said to of handed out contracts to consultants worth tens of millions of euros without making a proper business case or inviting rival bids.
Reports also suggested allegations that her office engaged business advisers illegally in an apparent attempt to cut labour costs.
German newspaper Der Spiegel reported in 2015 that auditors estimated Ms von der Leyen’s department had spent €100 million on external consultants but only declared €2.2 million.
A year later, the defence ministry had only declared €2.9 million of the €150 million spent on outside staff.
www.express.co.uk/news/world/1153829/EU-news-Ursula-von-der-Leyen-European-Commission-president-Germany-defence-latest
Proof positive that the EU is the escape route [and reward - fat salary, pension, perks etc] of choice for the totally corrupt. As long as they are in Brussels the law cannot touch them.