Trojan’s job is on the line

Date: 08/07/1999

By Gareth Harding
COMMISSION Secretary-General Carlo Trojan's job is on the line after what many regard as his disastrous handling of the crisis which led to the collapse of the institution earlier this year, according to well-placed sources.

Many within the Commission believe that the institution's most senior official will not last long in incoming President Romano Prodi's new-look team.

The Dutchman is widely believed to have mishandled the Commission's response to the crisis which engulfed Jacques Santer's team in March, although there has never been any suggestion that he is guilty of any wrongdoing.

He is also unpopular with the institution's powerful staff unions, prompting fears that it will be harder for the new team to reform the Commission's internal procedures if he is not replaced.