After its election by the newly formed European Parliament and formal appointment by the European Council at the end of November, the new European Commission took office on 1 December 2024. The College is made up of Commissioners from 27 EU countries, each of them with equal status. Each Commissioner is responsible for a specific policy area. Re-elected President Ursula von der Leyen (from Germany) will lead the new College of Commissioners for a second term, together with High Representative and Vice-President Kaja Kallas (from Estonia) and five Executive Vice-Presidents.

The new Commission is guided by seven key priorities to create a faster, simpler, and more united Union. The priorities for the years 2024-2029 are as follows:

• A new plan for Europe's sustainable prosperity and competitiveness;
• A new era of European defence and security;
• Support for the people; the strengthening of the European social model and societies;
• Preservation of quality of life: food security, water, and nature;
• Protection of democracy; preservation of European values;
• A global Europe: leveraging Europe's power and partnerships;
• Mutual implementation of deliverables and preparation of the Union for the future.

In the area of Home Affairs and Migration, newly appointed Commissioner Magnus Brunner (from Austria) is expected to design and implement a new European Internal Security Strategy as well as strengthen law enforcement and judicial cooperation. He will also lead the efforts against serious and organised crime, cybercrime, and terrorism, above all by proposing a new European action plan against drug trafficking, a renewed EU action plan on firearms, and by leading the work in the fight against cybercrime and on a new Counter-Terrorism Agenda. He will lead the efforts in the fight against serious and organised crime and work to better protect children against sexual abuse, both online and offline. He is also tasked with ensuring that Europol becomes a truly operational police agency. Furthermore, Brunner will oversee the implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, develop a new and common approach on the return of irregular migrants, and lead the efforts in the fight against migrant smuggling. He will promote integrated border management, strengthen Frontex, and work towards achieving a fully functional European digital border management.

The new Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud and Public Administration Piotr Serafin (from Poland) will focus on preparing the next long-term budget. He is, inter alia, tasked with protecting the EU budget and with the fight against fraud. This includes coordination of the implementation of the Conditionality Regulation, to ensure that respect for the rule of law remains imperative for EU funds. Serafin will lead a review of the overall anti-fraud architecture linked to the EU’s financial interests, ensuring effective and efficient cooperation with the European Public Prosecutor’s Office to protect the EU budget.

Michael McGrath (from Ireland), the newly appointed Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection, will be responsible, inter alia, for the development of a clear EU approach to anti-corruption, ensuring that EU funding is put towards national measures to fight corruption. He will also ensure that EU budget instruments are always implemented in a way that is fully consistent with respect for the rule of law and fundamental rights. Looking at his portfolio for justice and consumer protection, one of his responsibilities concerns the full enforcement of the General Data Protection Regulation while ensuring that it stays up to date as well as the promotion of trusted data flows with international partners. In addition, another focus of his work will be on strengthening the European Arrest Warrant to allow judicial authorities to work more closely and to step up cooperation between Europol and Eurojust.