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Unveiling his new College of Commissioners, European Commission (EC) President-elect Jean-Claude Juncker conceded Wednesday that one of his biggest challenges will be to convince citizens that things will change.
After four years of austerity, deep cuts in public spending and close to zero pay increases, it is the economy that is upper mind in most people's concerns when looking at Europe's immediate future.
Juncker has had to tread a fine line: on one hand, reassuring central banks and financial markets that Europe is serious about fiscal discipline as a new euro crisis threatens to boil over, while handing some concessions to centre-left politicians who believe that Europe can still spend its way out of recession.
The new post of Economic and financial affairs, taxation and customs, is a merger of two previous separate functions, and the job of Commissioner falls to France's Pierre Moscovici. Politically, this creates the interesting scenario of having a French Socialist at the heart of EU-wide economic policy at a time when the Socialist government in France seems to stumble from one crisis to another.
Just two weeks ago, the French government resigned en masse and was reformed following a very public row between Prime Minister Manuel Valls and left wing industry minister Arnaud Montebourg, who publicly criticized the austerity measures implemented across Europe.
However, Moscovici is hugely experienced and very much of his party's centre, and is therefore unlikely to unsettle financial markets. Moreover, apart from him, Juncker has studiously allocated other economic and financial posts to politicians from his own centre-right grouping of the European People's Party (EPP) sending a message that fiscal and monetary discipline will continue under his stewardship. Not everyone will welcome that, of course, but Europe's de facto leader German Chancellor Angela Merkel will like the continued stability it represents.
There was also a last minute surprise in the proposed College in that Juncker seems to be conscious of the now real threat of Britain's withdrawal from the EU. British Prime Minister David Cameron fought a very public campaign against Juncker's appointment as EC President, but the former Luxembourg premier at least doesn't seem to have taken it personally. He has chosen Britain's Lord Hill for the newly-created post of Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union.
Even just one week ago, it was thought that Britain would end up with the relatively minor post of energy and climate change. But instead Juncker has nominated British representative to one of the most important economic jobs, overseeing the financial services sector, an industry in which Britain is dominant.
Cameron even Tweeted a message saying it was "Good that Lord Hill has been nominated as EU commissioner for financial services: a vital sector for jobs, pensions & savings across the UK."
Crucially, two of the Vice-President roles chiefly responsible for economic policy have gone to politicians aligned with the centre-right European People's Party (EPP).
Finland's Jyrki Katainen will become Vice-President for Jobs, growth, investment and competiveness, tasked with overseeing a 300 billion euros (3.9 billion U.S. dollars) stimulus package of public and private investment over the next three years.
Latvia's Valdis Dombrovskis, becomes Vice-President for the Euro and will take charge of the reform of Europe's economic and monetary union to preserve the stability of the single currency.
Both these northern eurozone countries are seen as allies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and supporters of austerity.
The new Commission is due to take office on November 1, but first has to be confirmed by the European Parliament at the latter' s plenary session in October.
