Ursula von der Leyen was heavily criticised for her immigration and green policies by a representative of the newest far-right group in the European Parliament.
Ewa Zajączkowska-Hernik, a Polish MEP part of the Eurosceptic and hard right Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) group, lashed out at Ms Von der Leyen hours before members of the European Parliament held a vote on whether the incumbent European Commission President should retain her role for another term.
After taking the floor, Ms Zajączkowska-Hernik described the first election as president of Ms Von der Leyen as a “huge mistake” before hitting out in an astonishing rant at some of the German politician’s signature policies.
She claimed: “You are the face of the European Green Deal, which is destroying the European economy and agriculture, which is leading to Europe becoming an economic backwater.
“You are the face of all the EU’s climate craziness, which leads to us Europeans becoming poorer and poorer.
“Finally, you are the face of the migration pact, and I address you as woman to woman, as mother to mother.”
Ms Zajączkowska-Hernik, who is a member of the Polish far-right Confederation party, went on to ask the Commission President how she isn’t “ashamed” of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which creates a solidarity mechanism for sharing the burden of asylum seekers’ claims between member states.
After claiming Ms Von der Leyen is “inviting” migrants to Europe, Ms Zajączkowska-Hernik said the politician should go “to prison, not to the European Commission”.
The Polish MEP, who was widely booed by fellow European politicians during her speech, added Ms Von der Leyen’s role as president of the Commission marked the “further downfall of the European Union“.
The European group of which Ms Zajączkowska-Hernik is a member of was created earlier this month and includes Germany’s far-right AfD. The eight parties making up the ESN are glued together by opposition to migration management within the EU, the Green Deal, military assistance to Ukraine and social progressivism.
Hours after Ms Zajączkowska-Hernik voiced the far-right’s unhappiness with Ms Von der Leyen, the German politician was re-elected President with 401 votes in a secret ballot.