Weber eyes cushy job for top aide

Welcome to Rapporteur. This is Eddy Wax with Nicoletta Ionta in Brussels.

Got a story we should know about? Drop us a line – we read every message.Need-to-knows:

• Parliament: EPP chief Manfred Weber appears to have created new post for close aide Udo Zolleis
• Climate: EU ministers meet to seal 2040 target riddled with opt-outs and exemptions ahead of COP30
• Recruitment: EPSO faces backlash over exam IT glitches as 50,000 candidates await delayed entry test

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From the capital

Centre-right chief Manfred Weber appears to be plotting to parachute one of his closest aides into a lucrative role in the European Parliament’s permanent civil service.

Udo Zolleis, a Bavarian political strategist who pushed the EPP towards Giorgia Meloni’s ECR group and previously served as Weber’s spokesman, is in line for a newly created post in the Parliament’s research wing, according to three Parliament sources familiar with the matter.

The post as director for “academia, research and foresight” was magicked into existence on 20 October, when MEPs approved a proposal by Secretary-General Alessandro Chiocchetti to restructure the research department, and create a new directorate.

Chiocchetti – whose own appointment involved creating new jobs to secure political backing – argued that the new directorate would spark “scientific research interest in the work of Members,” in a note obtained by Rapporteur.

“Probably this directorate has been created in order to give him a job,” said one former Parliament official. “Manfred is of the view that his people should populate the system.”

The vacancy appears to be written for Zolleis, who lectures in politics at Tübingen University, about two hours’ drive from Strasbourg, where the role will be based. A current head of unit, Zolleis would earn at least €18,000 a month in the new post.

Race to be Merz’s eyes in Parliament

Three MEPs are vying to head the powerful German centre-right delegation in Parliament, Rapporteur has learnt. Daniel Caspary is stepping down from leading the 29-member CDU-CSU faction to become Germany’s member of the European Court of Auditors, having held the role since 2017.

Two sources told Rapporteur that the delegation chief whip Christine Schneider, budgetary control committee chief Niclas Herbst, and constitutional affairs chief Sven Simon are all in the running. A decision is likely to be taken in December.

Last chance to save 2040EU environment ministers are in town to agree on the EU’s 2040 climate target, according to my colleague Nikolaus J. Kurmayer. The climate draft plan has been riddled with opt-outs, exemptions, and emergency brakes to win support from governments who say the 90% reduction target is too ambitious given the bloc’s industrial malaise.

Agreement is far from certain. Without one, the EU would touch down in Brazil for COP30 on Thursday lacking a UN-mandated 2035 target – a major embarrassment for the bloc’s top brass.

MEPs will still have a say, though few expect Weber to push for greater ambition than EU countries. The centre ground in Parliament wouldn’t let him anyway.

Wie Lange can this deal last?

The Parliament’s trade committee debates Bernd Lange’s report today on a bid to remove tariffs on US farm and industrial goods, as called for under the EU-US “framework” deal, according to my colleague Thomas Møller-Nielsen.

Lange, a German Social Democrat, has said the bloc should refrain from scrapping tariffs on US steel unless Washington reciprocates by lowering its own 50% duties on EU metal exports.

The veteran MEP has also called for a “standstill clause” to prevent the US from imposing fresh levies and a “suspension mechanism” to allow the EU to re-impose tariffs if trade tensions escalate.

Don’t miss Tom’s piece about how the EU is baffled about whether China’s suspension of its export controls on rare earths applies to Europe, or not.

Putting the IT in recruitment shitshow

The same people handling IT stuff for the EU’s deforestation regulation are probably also running EPSO, the bloc’s gaffe-prone careers office.

Sarantis Michalopoulos reports that yet another round of technical problems hit an entry exam last week. EPSO has been so plagued by IT issues that its entry exam for all-comers has been postponed until early 2026, as it tests a new Luxembourgish provider, OAT, which it splashed €11 million on in June.

An estimated 50,000 people are now waiting to take the generalist entry exam, more than the total staff employed by the Commission.

Meanwhile, Parliament’s petitions committee will vote today on a resolution condemning the “poor organisational management of EPSO competitions,” another sign of frustration boiling over. András Baneth, who trains applicants, said: “It’s a make-or-break moment for EPSO to prove its professionalism.”

Dates for the diary

A new Commission calendar has dropped.

The Commission will propose an affordable housing plan on 16 December.

A new visa policy strategy has slipped to 14 January.

The capitals

BERLIN 🇩🇪

Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul spoke by phone with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, a conversation Berlin called “very good and constructive” after weeks of diplomatic friction. Both sides agreed to maintain dialogue. Wadephul’s planned visit to Beijing was postponed with no new date set. China has also invited Friedrich Merz and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Wadephul instead travelled to Brussels for talks on semiconductor and raw-material supplies.

PARIS 🇫🇷

France’s government held its first meeting with parliamentary groups on Monday to end the budget stalemate, though the talks – boycotted by left-wing parties – produced little progress. The session was described as “a general discussion,” with further meetings planned. Economy Minister Roland Lescure warned that “many of the amendments adopted so far are inoperative,” while signalling that a “fiscal gesture” would feature in the final budget.

THE HAGUE 🇳🇱

The Green Left-Labour alliance has tapped Jesse Klaver to replace Frans Timmermans after its heavy election defeat, as talks begin over forming a new coalition. Klaver, who has led the Greens since 2015, is seen as a likely ally for D66 leader Rob Jetten, who is likely to become prime minister. Jetten has signalled he would prefer a coalition including Klaver, the VVD, and the Christian Democrats – though VVD leader Dilan Yeşilgöz remains hesitant.

STOCKHOLM 🇸🇪

Sweden has unveiled plans to expand police powers to provoke and uncover serious crimes, including the use of AI-generated child sexual abuse material and online impersonation. The proposal, drafted by investigator Stefan Johansson, would formalise undercover methods already used in practice, allowing officers to pose as minors or buyers to infiltrate criminal networks. The government said digitalisation requires new methods, while critics warn the measures raise ethical and legal concerns.

COPENHAGEN 🇩🇰

Denmark’s centrist government is under fire over allegations that hundreds of Asian students and their families entered the country through a student-visa loophole, triggering scrutiny of Copenhagen’s hard-line immigration stance. Immigration Minister Rasmus Stoklund will face parliament on Tuesday as critics accuse the coalition of “losing control” of its defining policy. The scandal has forced Mette Frederiksen to promise tighter oversight, including language requirements.

ROME 🇮🇹

Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova provoked outrage in Rome after mocking the partial collapse of the Torre dei Conti, suggesting on Telegram that “as long as the Italian government keeps wasting taxpayers’ money, Italy will keep collapsing – from its economy to its towers,” in reference to the capital’s €2.5 billion in aid to Ukraine. Italy denounced the remarks as “squalid and disturbing,” saying they revealed “the abyss of vulgarity into which Moscow’s leadership has fallen.”

MADRID 🇪🇸

Carlos Mazón, the embattled leader of Spain’s Valencia region, resigned on Monday amid mounting criticism over his handling of last year’s catastrophic floods, which killed more than 230 people. The conservative Popular Party politician said he had become “the focus of criticism, noise, hatred and tension,” but will remain a regional lawmaker. Mazón faced fierce scrutiny for delaying flood alerts by over 12 hours, a lapse families say cost lives.

WARSAW 🇵🇱

Public support for reinstating mandatory military service in Poland has fallen sharply, with only 39% now in favour, down from 55% in March, according to a new IBRiS poll for Rzeczpospolita. The decline comes amid heightened regional security concerns. The Defence Ministry insists that a return to conscription is not under consideration, and is instead prioritising voluntary training programmes.

PRAGUE 🇨🇿

Czechia moved closer to forming a new government on Monday as populist ANO, the far-right SPD, and the right-wing Motorists Party signed a coalition agreement outlining a hardline policy agenda. The deal names SPD leader Tomio Okamura, a eurosceptic who backs Czexit, as parliamentary speaker. Their joint platform rejects the EU Green Deal and migration pact. ANO leader Andrej Babiš plans to finalise his cabinet by mid-December.

BUDAPEST 🇭🇺

Opposition leader Péter Magyar said on Monday that a “malicious” cyberattack was behind a major leak of his TISZA party supporters’ personal data, as the movement continues to mount an unprecedented challenge to Viktor Orbán’s 15-year rule. Pro-government media reported that information from 200,000 TISZA app users had briefly appeared online. Magyar accused the “terrified” government of orchestrating the attack ahead of the party’s internal primary later this month.

Schuman roundabout

Poles apart: A Parliament event on the rule of law sparked criticism from scholars who were invited to participate alongside controversial Polish judges appointed by a body deemed unlawful by the EU Court of Justice. French law professor Laurent Pech withdrew, saying: “It’s like organising a conference on drugs and inviting traffickers to speak.”

Magnus Lund Nielsen saw earlier draft programmes in which Kamil Zaradkiewicz and Paweł Czubik – judges appointed under the Law & Justice government – were listed as speakers, though both names were removed from the latest version.

In an internal email, organiser MEP Sven Simon said “an old draft of the programme was mistakenly sent out,” but defended the initiative, arguing that “it makes little sense to hold a dialogue on the rule of law where everyone shares the same opinion.”

‘The APA club’: Former MEP Antonius Manders threw a farewell party for his long-time parliamentary assistant Marijn Verhees at a bar on Place Lux last night, offering free beer and pizza to aides. The gathering also doubled as the “inaugural” event for The APA Club, according to the invitation, which stressed it was in no way associated with the European Parliament (despite using its logo).

Manders said he organised and paid for the event himself and is open to hosting future ones. He now works part-time as a lobbyist in Brussels after returning to the Netherlands. Verhees is heading to the Commission to work for Commissioner Christophe Hansen.

Also on Euractiv

Germany has privately warned that the EU’s ambition to build “AI gigafactories” risks being hampered by a funding gap, as Brussels struggles to raise the billions needed to compete with the US and China.

In an email to EU diplomats seen by Euractiv, Berlin cautioned that the funds set aside by the Commission “are not sufficient” to finance the large-scale expansion of AI computing capacity, warning that the shortfall could discourage investors. The Commission said the project is still in its early stages and that additional financing will be sought through the European Investment Bank and the InvestEU programme.

Agenda

Contributors: Thomas Møller Nielsen, Sarantis Michalopoulos, Magnus Lund Nielsen, Nikolaus J. Kurmayer, Alessia Peretti, Aleksandra Krzysztoszek, Aneta Zachová, Charles Szumski

Editors: Christina Zhao, Sofia Mandilara