Brussels, Nov 19 (EFE) .- The countries of the European Union (EU) will choose tomorrow the future headquarters of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Banking Authority (EBA), with Bratislava as a favorite to take the first to the detriment of Barcelona and Frankfurt in head to host the second.

Both community agencies, based in London, should change location in March 2019, when the UK is scheduled to leave the community club.

In total 19 cities submitted their candidacy to take over the EMA, which has 890 employees but receives every year the visit of 35,000 experts from the pharmaceutical industry.

Son Barcelona, �??�??Amsterdam, Athens, Bonn (Germany), Bratislava, Brussels, Bucharest, Copenhagen, Dublin, Helsinki, Lille (France), Milan (Italy), Porto (Portugal), Sofia, Stockholm, Malta, Vienna, Warsaw and Zagreb.

To the EBA, in charge of regulating banking supervision with 159 employees, they aspire to Brussels, Frankfurt (Germany), Paris, Luxembourg, Dublin, Prague, Vienna and Warsaw.

The Minister of Health, Dolors Montserrat, will travel tomorrow to Brussels to represent Spain in the General Affairs Council at which the vote will be held, something unusual since in this meeting the country is usually represented at the level of secretary of State.

According to a senior EU official, Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, which still does not host any European agency, comes to the race as a favorite to take over the EMA, while that Frankfurt (Germany), seat of the European Central Bank, would be the one to host the EBA.

The German option seems logical since it would allow the Banking Authority to be close to the supervisor, with whom he works side by side.

On the other hand, Amsterdam and Milan also have strong candidacies to take over the EMA, at the expense of Barcelona.

The Spanish Government, the Generalitat and the Barcelona City Council, which jointly prepared the candidature of the Ciudad Condal, have defended since the beginning of the same that Barcelona is the candidate better prepared, meets all the requirements, and in particular has the building ready for the agency, the Glories Tower.

However, in recent days the Government has admitted that the independence process weighs on the possibilities of Barcelona. Vigo.

Diplomatic sources acknowledge that the issue of political instability in Catalonia has appeared in the discussions between the Twenty-seven.

The issue did not appear, however, in the "objective" analysis made in September by the European Commission, which pointed out that Barcelona respects all the criteria: to ensure that the agency can be operational as soon as it moves, accessibility of the city, the existence of schools for children of staff, access to the labor market and healthcare and business continuity.

Against him could play the criterion of geographical dispersion, since in Spain already has three community agencies.

In any case, the final decision will fall tomorrow to the Council of Affairs General, where the representatives of the countries will first choose the headquarters of the EMA and then the EBA in two secret ballots that will begin at around 4.30 pm (3.30 pm) GMT).

Each vote will be held in a maximum of three rounds. they get three points from more than half of countries (14 States) will be chosen. country will have only one point for their preferred option and if any one receives 14 votes will be the winner, while, otherwise, the two best positioned will go to the third round.

Yes in the final round there is a tie (which could only happen if a state abstains), the winner would be chosen by lot.

The candidate that is made with the Medication Agency does not he will be able to opt for the Banking Authority if he submitted for both.

Afterwards, the European Commission will have to prepare without delay the legislative proposals for the transfers, which will need the final approval of the countries and the European Parliament.