Viviane Reding is to keep the audiovisual policyand MEDIA Programme portfolio in the new team of commissioners unveiled by JoseManuel Barroso, President-designate of the European Commission.

Reding has been commissioner for Education,Culture, Youth, Media & Sport since 1999 and will now serve as theCommissioner for Information Society and Media. She will head the InformationSociety Direction Generale (DG) as well as the audiovisual policy and MediaProgramme units from the Education and Culture DG. Her responsibilities willalso cover the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA).

Reding, 53, is from Luxembourg. She has adoctorate in human sciences from the Sorbonne in Paris and was a journalistbefore entering politics.

Meanwhile, responsibilities for education andculture will be handled by a newcomer to the Commission, the Slovak Jan Figel,as Commissoner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilinguism.

Barroso's team will meet for the first time foran informal session in Brussels this Friday (August 20) and will then appearbefore European Parliament (EP) committees over two weeks from September 27.The new Commissioners must gain the confidence of and win approval from the EPbefore November 1 before they can officially start their work.

Barroso's appointment as EC president wasapproved by the EP last month.