European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen is recovering from a extreme case of pneumonia however won’t attend the weekly assembly of Commissioners.
The president of the European Fee is on the mend and anticipated to renew in-person appointments quickly, amid criticism over lack of communication about her situation over the previous week.
Ursula von der Leyen won’t chair this week’s School of Commissioners on Wednesday and has requested govt vp Teresa Ribera to step in, a Fee spokesperson confirmed on Monday, including that “the president is recovering effectively”.
At the moment recuperating at her residence in Hannover, Germany, Von der Leyen is anticipated to renew her exterior engagements by the top of this week.
She plans to take part within the World Financial Discussion board in Davos subsequent week and attend the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg.
Her workplace introduced on January 3 that the president was cancelling all exterior commitments for the primary two weeks of January as a consequence of “extreme pneumonia”.
Pneumonia is a respiratory an infection that causes irritation within the air sacs of 1 or each lungs, typically leading to fluid or pus accumulation. Signs can embrace persistent coughing, fever, chills, and issue respiration.
At 66 years previous, von der Leyen falls right into a high-risk group for issues from pneumonia.
The president was hospitalised for over per week from 2 January to 10 January however continued to fulfil her duties throughout her keep. “Her means to behave was by no means in query,” the spokesperson mentioned.
Operating the EU from a hospital mattress
The disclosure of von der Leyen’s hospitalisation sparked criticism over the Fee’s dealing with of communication to most of the people of her well being circumstances.
Her crew solely publicly acknowledged her hospitalisation final Friday, resulting in accusations of insufficient transparency.
The Fee spokesperson defended the method, stating they offered “vital details about the president’s well being standing,” together with the severity of her sickness – which hinted at her hospitalisation – and her determination to cancel exterior engagements.
Whereas confirming that von der Leyen had a extreme case of pneumonia, the spokesperson clarified that she was by no means on a respirator or in intensive care.
“The president was within the place, regardless of being in a hospital, to nonetheless run the Fee by being in day by day contact [with her team], by taking on the calls she needed to take and by guaranteeing that enterprise continued to run,” the spokesperson mentioned.
Von der Leyen’s well being has since improved, and he or she is anticipated to totally resume her official obligations shortly.