One year on: the good, the bad and the unfinished

Achievements:

• Simplification and refocusing of the Lisbon Agenda for growth and jobs;
• reform of the Stability and Growth Pact, underpinning the single currency;
• better regulation initiatives;
• proposals on energy, including a Green Paper on energy efficiency;
• strategy for Africa and a new development policy;
• reinforced anti-terrorism measures in the wake of the London bombings;
• starting accession negotiations with Turkey and Croatia;
• setting the tone for debate on globalisation;
• adopting a Transparency Initiative, aiming at improving openness in the EU institutions and making lobbying more transparent.

Failures:

• Failure to sell the virtues of the EU constitution, before and after the referenda in France and the Netherlands;
• clumsy handling of major legislative dossiers, such as services directive, chemicals legislation REACH, the software patent directive;
• failure to shape debate on financial perspectives and help achieve a deal;
• handling of the trade conflict with China;
• escalation of trade conflicts with the US;
• poor judgement from Barroso in accepting hospitality gifts from a Greek shipping magnate and participating in Portuguese electoral campaign;
• failure to improve relations with the European Parliament;
• failure to convince supporters of a more 'social' European model that the Commission is not following a neo-liberal agenda and failure to stop national leaders attacking the Commission.

What they say

"As presidency we have, of course, worked closely with Barroso and his team, especially in the run-up to the Hampton Court summit on which the Commission's work was invaluable. I look forward to continuing to work with him and his colleagues over the rest of our presidency John Grant, UK ambassador to the EU

He had a difficult start because he could not choose his commissioners and then there was the problem with [Rocco] Buttiglione. But now the Commisison is really working and, with its work programme for next year, is starting to look ahead. Its legislative plans will, I believe, provide a solid base for the remaining years of the Barroso Commission Hans-Gert P�ttering, leader of the EPP-ED group

He has still to grasp full control of a somewhat mixed bag of commissioner colleagues as well as navigate between a resurgent and far-from-timid Parliament and member states who promise the earth but persistently fail to deliver on their Lisbon Agenda commitments to raise our collective competitiveness. Barroso has for the first time taken seriously the need to tackle the growing burden of EU regulation and repeal laws which no longer make sense or have found no agreement after years of discussion. He is learning fast Graham Watson, leader of the ALDE group

The Barroso Commission has shown a clear commitment to building the knowledge-based society and economy to create growth and jobs. This is very important for our industry because biotech is an important engine of innovation and competitiveness across many industriesJohan Vanhemelrijck, secretary-general of biotech umbrella group EuropaBio

I am sorry to say that Barroso and his Commission has, so far, lacked vision and any clear direction Philippe Busquin, commissioner for research in the Prodi Commission, now an MEP

The Commission's responses to the budget and constitution crises have been weak. I do not believe the Commission's work programme for next year is at all inspiring. It is certainly not an adequate response to the crisis facing Europe. Barroso will have to do an awful lot better if he wants to be remembered as a successful Commission president. There seems to be a lack of leadership and vision at the heart of EuropePoul Nyrup Rasmussen MEP, president of the Party of European Socialists (PES)

During Barroso's first year as president we have seen insufficient commitment to the environment in general Dr Clairie Papazoglou, head of BirdLife International's Brussels office

I have been an MEP for 26 years and this Commission is the most liberal in the history of the European Parliament. The Commission has lost part of its authority in the EU. There is a crisis of confidence between the EU institutions and its citizens and this Commission must bear some responsibility for that Francis Wurtz, leader of the GUE group

We are not particularly disappointed because we did not expect anything from Barroso or his Commission. We expected nothing that is what we have got - nothing. This is exactly as we predicted. The problem with Barroso is that he always appears to be moving in different directions. He does not seem to know where he is going Daniel Cohn-Bendit, joint leader of the Greens-EFA group

I am particularly disappointed with Barroso's efforts to improve transparency. After a very good start in which he published lists of the Commission's 3,000 working groups nothing has been done since, so we do not know who is in those groups Danish MEP Jens-Peter Bonde, co-leader of the Independence-Democracy group

We have seen light and shade. Progress has been achieved in the direction of better laws, with vice-president Verheugen taking concrete steps to simplify rules. International economic and trade relations are being taken care of and quite a lot of work is being done towards an agreement in Hong Kong in December. The renewed Lisbon Strategy for growth and jobs launched by Barroso remains the main highlight of the new Commission. In the debate on the social model, while agreeing on the challenges faced due to globalisation outlined by the Commissiion, UNICE misses more substance on how to modernise Europe and ways to encourage entrepreneurship," Philippe de Buck, secretary-general of the Union of Industrial and Employer's Confederations of Europe (UNICE)

What happened

NOVEMBER 2004 -- 18 November: Parliament approves Commission team headed by Jos�anuel Barroso, having previously objected to line-up that included Italy's Rocco Buttiglione. Commission is sworn in at European Court of Justice on 22 November

DECEMBER 2004 -- 16 December: EU leaders invite Turkey to begin talks on joining the EU from October 2005

26 December: Indian Ocean tsunami claims more than 250,000 lives

26 December: Viktor Yushchenko wins re-run of Ukraine's presidential election, after the Orange Revolution refuses to accept the first poll, rigged for the Moscow- backed Viktor Yanukovych

JANUARY 2005 -- 26 January : Barroso tells MEPs that his first priority will be to "reconnect with citizens", citing the successful entry into force of the EU constitution as a necessary first step

FEBRUARY 2005 -- 2 February: Barroso launches 'growth and jobs' agenda

20 February: Portugal's Socialists obtain their largest ever majority in a general election after Barroso campaigns for their centre-right rivals. Spain votes in favour of EU constitution

21-22 February: George W. Bush visits Brussels in a bid to soothe transatlantic tensions over Iraq

MARCH 2005 -- 16 March: EU foreign ministers postpone Croatia's EU entry talks over allegations that Zagreb is obstructing the handover of indicted war criminal Ante Gotovina to a tribunal in The Hague

22 March: EU leaders agree to relaunch economic reform agenda

MAY 2005 -- 26 May: Barroso threatened with motion of no-confidence in Parliament over his acceptance of a holiday on a yacht owned by Greek billionaire Spiros Latsis. But the motion is signed by only 77 of the 732 MEPs and fails

29 May: France rejects EU constitution in referendum, 55%-45%

JUNE 2005 -- 1 June: Dutch voters reject constitution, 62%-38%

17 June: European Council breaks up in acrimony with no agreement on EU spending for 2007-13

JULY 2005 -- 7 July: Bombs in London kill 56 people

10 July: Luxembourg voters approve EU constitution

OCTOBER 2005 -- 4 October: EU launches accession talks with Turkey and Croatia

NOVEMBER 2005 -- 9 November: Barroso announces wide-ranging reshuffle of senior officials, appointing Catherine Day as the institution's first female secretary-general

Article takes a look at the first year in office of the European Commission under President Joseacute; Manuel Barroso, listing achievements and failures. Article also includes a timeline and brings together voices from across the EU.

European Commission: The European Commission at work: The Commission's work programme http://ec.europa.eu/atwork/programmes/index_en.htm

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