Brussels, 06/02/2013 (Agence Europe) - Political parties on the Right (ADLE, EPP and ECR) and Left (S&D, Greens/EFA and GUE/NGL) at the European Parliament (EP) are totally at odds with one another over economic policy in Europe, yet on Wednesday 6 February the EP is to decide on its policy vis-a-vis the European Commission's Annual Growth Survey, a document that kicks off the European Semester process.
After initially rejecting a draft report by Elisa Ferreira (S&D, Portugal) (see EUROPE 10770), the Parliament's economic and monetary affairs committee managed to agree on a new version of the report on Monday 4 February to submit to the EP in plenary. Sources at the EP explain that there is a coalition of forces (ADLE, PPE and ECR) that have found a certain common ground, but no wider agreement.
Most of the right wing on the economic and monetary affairs committee rejected her report, Ferreira told the plenary, so various things have been removed. She slammed the excessive austerity demands that are undermining economic authority, giving the example of growth forecasts contradicted by the facts, and regretting the unacceptably high level of macroeconomic imbalances,with surpluses in Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg on the one hand and countries on the periphery with what she described as uncontrolable deficits on the other.
Ahead of the vote on Wednesday, the S&D party will lodge amendments, backed by the other Left parties, reiterating its position on the following: - economic austerity must be spread out in time, making use of the flexibility margins of the Stability and Growth Pact; - the European Commission must change its models and rely on improved forecasts of how austerity measures will impact on the economy; - tax evasion and tax fraud must be tackled more effectively. The European Parliament's employment committee's contribution (to be voted upon on Thursday) takes these elements on board.
Admitting that the report is largely the fruit of discussion by the EPP, ADLE and ECR, Jean-Paul Gauzès (EPP, France) criticised the rapporteur's attitude, saying that we live in a democracy, so votes count and when one does not look to compromise, then one arrives at a situation where everyone returns to their initial positions, which is what happened here. He said the EPP backed the European Commission's call for budget consolidation and structural reforms to continue. The Commission is expected to publish growth stimulus measures, but Gauzes rejected the idea that the current situation was caused by austerity policies alone. (MB/transl.fl)