23 July 2023

L’affaire Scott Morton: European outcry forces US economist to drop top job

Emmanuel Macron’s effective veto of the hiring of Fiona Scott Morton shows just how much France rules the roost in Brussels.

...Today’s problem is that Paris has no understanding of the term “poacher turned gamekeeper.”

As Carl Bildt, former Swedish prime minister, tweeted: “Regrettable that narrow-minded opposition in some EU countries has led to this. She was reportedly the most competent candidate, and a knowledge of the U.S. and its antitrust policies should certainly not have been a disadvantage.”

A spat in Brussels pits an open vision of Europe against an insular one

The sorry saga of Fiona Scott Morton

Paris, rome, amsterdam: Americans are everywhere you look in Europe these days, sweltering as they queue for tourist attractions in the midst of a heatwave.

One place where they are apparently not welcome is Brussels.
A proposal by the European Commission to appoint an American citizen, Fiona Scott Morton, as chief economist to its competition arm fell through on July 19th.

After a week of French-led protests at the idea of une Américaine! advising the executive arm of the European Union in its trust-busting efforts, the Yale professor said she was no longer interested.

What could have been a signal of admirable European openness to the world has instead underlined the growing influence of those who think the continent needs a more insular, Europe-first approach.

European outcry forces US economist to drop top job

Published
4 days ago

Image caption,
Yale economist Fiona Scott Morton is highly regarded but her appointment was criticised by big political groupings in Brussels

By Paul Kirby

BBC News

A highly qualified American economist, Fiona Scott Morton, has pulled out of a top European Commission post after her appointment prompted widespread European criticism.

She said that "given the political controversy", the best course of action was not to take up the job of Chief Competition Economist.

The loudest objections to her appointment came from France.

President Emmanuel Macron waded into the issue saying he was "dubious".

"Are there no great European researchers who have the academic skills for this job? If that's our conclusion then it's extremely worrying," he told reporters on Tuesday.

If someone of that caliber was not available he said Europe's academic systems had a very big problem, pointing out that US and Chinese rules would have barred a European from getting the same kind of job.

Ms Scott Morton, a Yale University economics professor, is undoubtedly highly qualified, having worked for the US justice department's antitrust department during the Obama presidency.

But she has also worked as a consultant for big tech firms such as Apple, Microsoft and Amazon - exactly the kind of big tech digital giants her job would have required to challenge in her role as chief competition economist in Brussels.

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, who has earned a reputation for taking on some of the biggest US tech firms, had robustly defended the appointment before MEPs in Brussels on Tuesday and described her corporate experience as an asset.

But in a statement on Wednesday she accepted Ms Scott Morton's decision not to take up the post "with regret and full respect for her integrity".