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EU chief Ursula von der Leyen easily survives parliament no-confidence vote

EU lawmakers dismissed allegations against Ursula von der Leyen regarding private text messaging with Pfizer’s CEO, misuse of funds, and election interference

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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen survived a no-confidence vote amid far-right tensions and corruption allegations. Photo: EPA
Associated Press
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen comfortably survived a vote of no confidence on Thursday, as an overwhelming number of European Union lawmakers rejected a censure motion against her.
The motion contained a mix of allegations against von der Leyen, including text messaging privately with the chief executive of vaccine maker Pfizer during the Covid-19 pandemic, misuse of EU funds and interference in elections in Germany and Romania.
The motion was defeated by a 360-175 vote, with 18 lawmakers choosing to abstain during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Von der Leyen wasn’t present for the vote.
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The vote has been a lightning rod for criticism of von der Leyen – who led the EU drive to find vaccines for around 450 million citizens during the pandemic – and her European People’s Party, (EPP), which is the largest political family in the assembly.

They’re accused of cosying up to the hard right to push through their agenda. The EU parliament shifted perceptibly to the political right after Europe-wide elections a year ago.

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“We won’t vote with the far-right and we do not support this motion. This vote was little more than a far-right PR stunt from Putin-loving populists,” Greens group President Terry Reintke said in a statement after the poll, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

However, she added: “We are ready to build pro-European majorities, but we will not be played by the EPP in their desperate deregulation agenda and their desire to consistently form anti-European majorities with the far-right.”

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