Brussels, 01/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - In October, the European Commission will present a legislative proposal to consolidate the external representation of the eurozone.
“Strengthening Economic and Monetary Union also implies a strong voice at international level. In October, we will come forward with a proposal on the external representation of the euro area”, the Commissioner for the Euro, Valdis Dombrovskis, announced on Wednesday 1 July.
On the same day, the College of Commissioners discussed the measures to be taken, quickly and without any need for a change of the treaties, to strengthen the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) on the basis of the recent specific report by the 'five presidents' (European Commission, European Council, ECB, Eurogroup and European Parliament) (see EUROPE 11342 and 11340).
Dombrovskis went on to stress that the Commission intends to “accelerate Banking Union and reinforce Europe's governance framework to enhance convergence and competitiveness”.
In the financial field, the European institution is to launch a consultation on the best way of shaping a “European Deposit Insurance Scheme”. This, he explained, will help to break the link between banks and their national sovereigns. The aim will be to identify the “best model”, said Dombrovskis, referring to a possible “reinsurance scheme”. The Commissioner declined to be drawn on a possible timetable for a proposal to be presented. Calling on member states to transpose the 'BRRD' directive on the national bank restructuring and resolution schemes, he hoped that new life would be injected into negotiations at the Council between now and the end of the year, to ensure that the future Single Resolution Fund (SRF) can secure bridge financing over its eight-year transition period (see EUROPE 11336). At the end of this period, the SRF will have a public 'backstop', which will be budgetary neutral in the medium term, specifically providing for an ex post contribution of the eurozone banks participating in banking union.
On strengthening economic convergence in the eurozone, Dombrovskis said that the Commission was to present, “in the autumn”, a communication on the revision of the so-called 'European Semester' budgetary process, in order to “strengthen the use of macroeconomic imbalances procedure” and “better integrate a strong social dimension” in the list of European socio-economic policy principles on which the member states must base their national budgets. He went on to refer to targeted proposals to simplify the Stability and Growth Pact ('6 and 2 packs'). (Mathieu Bion)