The European Commission has officially announced that it will be appointing Joanna Drake as the new Head of the Commission’s Representation in Malta.

Dr Drake is currently the chair of the Occupational Health and Safety Authority and also has a background in private enterprise and as a lecturer in law at the University of Malta.

She holds a doctor’s degree in law from the University of Malta and was called to the Bar in 1989. She unsuccessfully contested the European Parliament elections last year on the PN ticket and was the chairperson of the “Yes for Malta in Europe” movement prior to the accession referendum in 2003.

The appointments of heads of representation in another six member states – Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia – were also announced yesterday.

A letter offering the position of head of representation has been sent to the candidates selected.

These appointments will be finalised after the acceptance of the offer by the candidates and the completion of the required medical check-up.

Four of the new heads are women. These appointments are the result of a long process, during which nearly 70 candidates have been interviewed out of hundreds of applicants for the posts in the ten new member states.

Representations are the official voice of the European Commission in member states.

They are responsible for explaining the policies of the European Union and making Europe more understandable to people.

They provide information about the EU through recognised outlets such as public libraries, business advice centres and educational services.

Their responsibilities also include providing information to the Commission on orientations and trends of public opinion in the country concerned.