The Frenchman, Commissioner for the Internal Market and Defence Industries, claims to have been ‘disowned’ by Ursula von der Leyen

Thierry Breton resigns from the European Commission and criticises Ursula von der Leyen

‘I am resigning from my post as European Commissioner, with immediate effect’. With these words, Thierry Breton, Commissioner for the Internal Market, announced his decision to leave the European Commission in a letter published on the social network X on Monday 16 September. He said he had been ‘disowned’ by Ursula von der Leyen, accusing her of having ‘asked France to withdraw his name’ from the list of candidates for the Commission. Breton had, however, been officially proposed by Emmanuel Macron as France’s representative.

The President of the Commission is in the process of forming her new executive team for a five-year term, and, in view of the war in Ukraine, she had expressed the wish to appoint a Defence Commissioner.

Governance criticised

‘A few days ago, at the very end of the negotiations on the composition of the future College, you asked France to withdraw my name – for personal reasons that you never discussed directly with me – while proposing, in exchange, an allegedly more influential portfolio for France’, writes Thierry Breton in his letter. He added that a ‘new candidate’ would soon be proposed by France.

‘With the recent events, marked once again by dubious governance, I note that I can no longer continue to carry out my duties within the College’, he continues

The tensions between Ursula von der Leyen and Thierry Breton were no secret, particularly after the latter led a rebellion against her leadership style, which was deemed too authoritarian. He had also publicly criticised an ethical decision by the President concerning the appointment of an envoy for small and medium-sized enterprises, a controversial post within the Commission.

In concluding his letter, Thierry Breton expressed his gratitude to his colleagues and partners: ‘I would like to thank my colleagues on the College, the Commission departments, the Members of the European Parliament, the Member States and my team. Together, we have carried forward an ambitious European project