Following the European elections of June 2004, the newly elected European Parliament held its first plenary session from 20 to 22 July. During this session, MEPs formally approved the nomination by the European Council of Portugal's Jose Manuel Durao Barrosso as Romano Prodi's successor as European Commission President. The key institutional change on the maritime front is that the former "RETT" Committee of the European Parliament ("Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism) has been split into two separate committees, Transport and Tourism on the one hand, and Regional Policy on the other. This is a positive development for the shipping industry as one can expect members of the new Transport and Tourism Committee to be more specialised and focused on transport issues.
