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The European Parliament’s Culture and Education Committee hosted a confirmation hearing with Mr Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner-designate for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport, on 4 November 2024. Mr Glenn Micallef shared his views with MEPs on intergenerational fairness, protecting young people and supporting the creative sector, among other topics.

This was the first time that a Commissioner-designate has been allocated a portfolio which includes intergenerational fairness, which is to be taken up by Mr Micallef, who was formerly the Head of the Secretariat of Robert Abela, Maltese Prime Minister, as well as Advisor on EU Affairs and European Council Sherpa.

In his opening remarks, Mr Micallef outlined his plans to ensure intergenerational fairness, stressing that “we must not leave any generation behind” and pointing that that it would be the first ever strategy on intergenerational fairness.

In response to questions, he explained that he saw intergenerational fairness as resting on three pillars:

• Harmony between the three generations – not pitting generations against each other or blaming generations for different challenges;
• Having equal opportunities for people in different generations;
• Having active, empowered citizens that trust public bodies.

He recalled that the concept of intergenerational fairness is set out in the treaties and pledged to work on this very seriously. He also saw that the issue was about the EU’s democratic values, since low perceptions of intergenerational fairness could create frustrations in society, causing disconnect and disillusionment.

He further elaborated that “it is also about our demography. We have ageing populations, greater longevity and lower fertility rates in the union, which in itself is a testament to our quality of life, but we also have to adapt our policies, for example, to the fact that 1 in 2 young people being born today will live to 100 years of age”. He saw that this would have an impact upon the way they look at education, employment policy, housing policies and climate change, and would require efforts across different policy areas. “We will develop a strategy with targeted actions that we will follow up on. I will use foresight to ensure that have evidence-based policies and actions to guide us in our work,” he added.

In other areas of the discussion, he exchanged views with MEPs on issues facing the creative and cultural sectors, including copyright protection and the challenges faced from AI. He also answered questions on participation in sports as a tool to ensure healthy lifestyles. With regard to youth, issues raised included the EU’s response to cyber-bullying and addressing youth mental health, the rights of children, and youth unemployment.

Next steps

It has been reported that Mr Micallef was approved as Commissioner-designate by MEPs after the hearing, and his candidacy is due to be confirmed as a part of a vote on the entire College of Commissioners in the week of 24-28 November 2024, who will take up office for a five year term.

Photo credits: EC – Audiovisual Service