Brussels, 06/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - Disappointed at the breakdown in the three-institution talks in the early hours of 5-6 July 2010 among EU institutions' representatives on the financial services legislation, the European Parliament is still keen to foster success at a later stage and has decided to vote on Wednesday 7 July on amendments to the reports on the new surveillance set-up although it will not be voting on the legislative resolution. Although agreement is no longer possible in first reading, it is hoped that progress will be made by September and the new system can still come into force, as planned, on 1 January 2011. The main obstacles to agreement are member states' reluctance to hand over power to supervise banks in their country and member states' refusal to allow the EU authorities the right to make the final decision in the event of disagreements among national financial regulators.
We are keeping options open, commented the rapporteur on the specific European Central Bank (ECB) tasks concerning the functioning of the European Systemic Risk Board, Spanish ALDE MEP Ramon Tremosa i Balcells. Spanish S&D MEP Antolín Sánchez Presedo, rapporteur on the powers of the European Banking Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and the European Securities and Markets Authority, commented that agreement was still possible.
The absence of the Council of Ministers from the debate is symptomatic of its small-minded, parish-pump approach, commented Sven Giegold (Greens/EFA, Germany), rapporteur on the European Securities and Markets Authority. French ALDE MEP Sylvie Goulard, rapporteur on setting up a European Systemic Risk Board, regretted that the Council of Ministers had been chipping bits off the package of legislation but said that the EP was prepared to make an effort to help the Belgian Presidency and would vote on the package but not conclude the legislative procedure. Goulard slammed the attitude of the Member States in their calls for a safeguard clause, wanting to know what such a clause would protect against - Europe perhaps?
Similar comments were made by Spanish EPP MEP José Manuel García-Margallo y Marfil, rapporteur on the European Banking Authority. The big four political parties at the EP will all vote in favour of the tabled amendments, he said, to ensure the EU can have a genuine, new financial supervision system on 1 January 2011. He urged the Council of Ministers to actually listen to the predictions of Cassandra for once and take account of taxpayers' interests because the high street should not pay for damage caused by Wall Street.
British Labour MEP Peter Skinner, rapporteur on the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, said that insurance should be treated differently from banking, but said that microeconomic surveillance is just as important as macroeconomic surveillance.
We can't stop banks going under, said Portuguese Socialist Elisa Ferreira, rapporteur on Cross-Border Crisis Management in the Banking Industry, but we can try and rein in the collateral damage and take preventive measures.
The EP's spirit of cooperation in the three-way talks on the dangers of economic collapse was welcomed by EU Financial and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn, who said that a lot of questions had been raised about how to organise the new bodies to be set up but the disagreements could be overcome. Rehn called for a modern surveillance set-up and a crisis prevention system to feed into confidence and economic recovery in Europe.
Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier said that he would be looking at a raft of new measures in the new few weeks and months along the lines recommended by the EP with a view to setting up preventive systems structured around financial supervision. Barnier welcomed the EP's great ambitions in this area and agreed with the MEPs that the new authorities needed to have legally binding powers. The most difficult area is yet to come, he warned, but said a 'dynamic, intelligent' agreement was possible and he hoped the Council of Ministers would seize the opportunities provided by the EP.
German EPP MEP Markus Ferber said that the EU had been talking about these problems for twelve months but with paltry results. These issues affect ordinary citizens so why are governments so reluctant to give the new authorities genuine powers, wondered Italian S&D MEP Gianni Pittella, adding that the EP was not a mob of extremists and its suggestions echoed the suggestions made by de La Rozière, rather than Robespierre. Pittella demanded that the EU have the casting vote in cross-brooder conflicts. The bankruptcy of financial institutions should be dealt with at EU level, added Sharon Bowles (ALDE, UK). Belgian Greens/EFA MEP Philippe Lambe said the EP had shown a reasonable attitude and he hoped there would be progress next week. (L.G. trans fl)