Cristina Lobillo Borrero has been appointed as the new senior advisor to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, for the Green Transition. This appointment clearly represents von der Leyen's new approach to energy and environmental policy issues. In a live program in Brussels, Zoya Shvetalovich and Ian Visart, the hosts of the program, discussed the impact of this appointment on von der Leyen's relationship with Teresa Ribera, the Commissioner for Energy.
Norway's concerns about late influence on EU policies
Norway has expressed concern that it has acted too late in lobbying to influence EU policies. Although Norway is not a member of the EU, it is required to adopt many EU laws. This could pose serious challenges for Norway, especially in the areas of energy and environment, which are currently in the spotlight.
Introduction of the new Brussels Playbook newsletter
Zoya and Ian also introduced the new newsletter “Brussels Playbook Capitals,” which serves as the evening edition of the Playbook newsletter. This newsletter covers news and developments across the European continent and, according to the hosts, aims to provide comprehensive and up-to-date information to readers. Zoya spoke with two writers of this newsletter, Marion Solt and James Angelo, to learn more about the content and goals of this newsletter.
Overall, these developments in Brussels indicate fundamental changes in the EU's energy and environmental policies that could have wide-ranging impacts on non-member countries as well. The appointment of Cristina Lobillo Borrero and Norway's concerns about influencing policies are all signs of profound changes in European policymaking.
