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Hahn again proposed as EU commissioner

The Local Austria
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Hahn again proposed as EU commissioner
Photo: EPA/JULIEN WARNAND

The government will again nominate Johannes Hahn (People's Party/VP) as Austria's member of the EU commission.

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This was announced by Vice Chancellor Michael Spindelegger (VP) on Tuesday. "We agreed on Gio Hahn to become EU commissioner", the VP leader said. The official nomination by the government should follow next week. Before that Chancellor Werner Faymann (Social Democrats/SP) has to hold talks with the Parliament.

It was not certain yet that Hahn would again become European Commissioner for Regional Policy, but Spindelegger said that he had talked about that issue with Faymann and Jean-Claude Juncker, who is the EU Commission presidential nominee.

"It does not look bad", the Vice Chancellor said. Faymann emphasized that Hahn had done "a good job" and he is due to be nominated "as soon as possible".

During his political career, the 56-year-old Hahn worked his way steadily up in the VP in the 1980's and 90's. In 1996 he entered the Vienna City parliament, and in 2003 became a city councillor without portfolio. He was meanwhile chairman of the board of "Novomatic AG" until joining the city council.

From June 2005 Hahn was head of the VP in the City of Vienna. In October the same year, his party placed second in Vienna elections, but far behind the ruling Social Democrats. In 2007 Hahn was sworn in as Federal Minister of Science and Research, until he became EU Commissioner in the second Barroso Commission in 2010.

Hahn, who is married and has one son, has successfully battled cancer. He sees himself as a liberal-conservative. "I stand for modern life-feeling, humane urbanity, and for openness and freedom in politics and society."

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