Brussels, 30/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 30 May, the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Durão Barroso, set out his vision of how the Commission can act to expand the economic arm of economic and monetary union (EMU). He said that at the European summit at the end of next month, “the Commission will advocate an ambitious approach. The 'building blocks' could include among others a banking union with integrated financial supervision and single deposit guarantee scheme. And as you know our ideas on stability for bonds are already on the table. We know that some of those decisions cannot be taken immediately, some require also from a legal point of view very important steps. But the fact the EU leaders, namely at the euro area level agree on deeper economic and financial integration is a very important signal in terms of the solidity and irreversibility of the euro.'
Barroso said that the Commission has unveiled a draft directive recommending European integration of member states' savings guarantee systems (see EUROPE 10555), which had initially been rejected by member states that now back the idea.
Alongside strengthening the economic arm of EMU, Barroso listed a range of dossiers where agreement is expected at the upcoming summit, namely recommendations on each member state's budget and macroeconomic policies; growth stimulus in the form of the project bond pilot stage, boosting the EIB's capital and making better use of Structural Fund cash; and the need for the next multiannual financial framework (EU five-year budget) to have enough money to invest in the future. Barroso said that if member states agree on the aims, then they should also agree on how to achieve the said aims. (MB/transl.fl)