Björn Seibert, Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Commission, has applied for a temporarily unpaid leave of absence from his duties in the Commission in order to manage Ursula von der Leyen's campaign, in accordance with the applicable rules and the Commission decision on the conduct of Commission officials and other servants during the election campaign to the European Parliament. Björn Seibert's leave will start on 6 April and is scheduled to end on 9 June. He will resume his current role as of 10 June.
President Ursula von der Leyen has decided that Anthony Whelan, Digital Adviser in the President's Cabinet since the end of 2019, will assume the duties of acting Head of Cabinet for the duration of Björn Seibert's leave of absence. Furthermore, she has also decided that Fernando Andresen Guimaraes, Diplomatic Adviser in the President's Cabinet, will assume the role of Sherpa for the G20 and G7 for the same period.
