SME Envoy: a half-baked nomination

“The European Commission’s nomination of the SME Envoy shows why many enterprises across the continent regularly complain about the EU, that it is out of touch with their business needs”, said Christian Ehler MEP, the EPP Group Spokesman on Industry, Energy and Research.

On 5 May 2021, the European Commission nominated Mr Vazil Hudák as EU SME Envoy. The nomination comes a year and a half late and worse still, comes devoid of any meaningful details.

“This nomination shows much more about the Commission itself than it does about Mr Hudák. It confirms that the Commission treats small enterprises with contempt. Why has it taken the Commission so long to nominate an SME Envoy? And now that it has nominated one, why hasn’t it divulged the terms of reference of his mandate? Will he report directly to President von der Leyen?” asked Mr Ehler.

This nomination brings more questions than it answers.

“A year and a half later, we are none the wiser. Why hasn’t the Commission published the curriculum vitae of Mr Hudák? Isn’t it time for the Commission to publish his background and qualifications? Did he ever own or run a business? Has the Commission published a vacancy or a recruitment posting? Will there be an appointment eventually? Why would the Commission nominate someone to itself?” queried Ehler.

Just two days after the Commission’s announcement of this nomination, news reports surfaced in the media that Mr Hudák was also appointed by the Prime Minister of Georgia as his new special advisor for foreign investments. The EPP Group would like to know whether Mr Hudák’s nomination as SME Envoy is on a part-time basis.

“This is, after all, a public appointment, paid by taxpayers’ money. These are all pertinent questions and indeed they are in the public interest. Therefore we expect the European Commission to answer them expediently”, concluded Ehler.