Foreign minister: Selection of new European commissioner can wait until after elections

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kohout says he sees no problem in leaving the selection of the next Czech European commissioner until after early elections in October. Speaking on a TV debate programme, Mr Kohout said, however, that by then political parties and the government should have produced a short-list of at least three possible candidates for the post. The election results would then determine who gets the job, he said. A few days ago the caretaker Czech prime minister, Jan Fischer, criticised the lack of clarity surrounding the appointment, which he said complicated talks on what position the Czech Republic will get on the European Commission. The current Czech commissioner is Vladimír Špidla, who holds the employment and social affairs brief.