Špidla to stand in briefly as regional development commissioner

The Czech EU commissioner for labour and social affairs, Vladimír Špidla, will also be acting commissioner for regional policy between May 17 and June 7, when he stands in for Danuta Huebner, who is running for election to the European Parliament in Poland. A spokesperson for Mr Špidla said he was taking over the regional development brief at the request of the European Commission president, Jose Manuel Barroso.