Letters to the editor

Sir, The next European Commission should not only be based on quality of the sexes as urged by several members of the European Parliament, as quotas do not necessarily improve effectiveness, but also on the individual characteristics and expertise of the candidates. The European Commission may have to respect women and men equally, but most of all it should respect the hopes and taxpayers' money, of some 450m Europeans. However, some countries, such as Italy, have all the luck and could actually hit two pigeons with one stone. In fact, there is little doubt that a candidate such as Emma Bonino, a former EU Commissioner, could make the perfect commissioner both in her gender, linguistics, human, and, not least, her professional capacities.

Marco Perduca, New York