On Thursday 16 March, the President of the Eurogroup, Jeroen Dijsselbloem of the Netherlands, reiterated that his term in office will run until the end of January 2018, in an attempt to nip in the bud any speculation as to his future at the helm of the informal body of Eurozone finance ministers.
“A new government coalition must be formed, but his mandate at the head of the Eurogroup will continue until January 2018”, said the acting Dutch finance minister, quoted by his spokesperson, Michel Reijns, in the wake of the Dutch general elections, in which Dijsselbloem's PvdA Socialist party suffered an unprecedented setback. This defeat raises the question as to whether the party will remain in the government coalition to be led by the outgoing Prime Minister, Mark Rutte.
Traditionally, every Eurogroup President is also a serving finance minister. In any case, a senior European diplomat stressed, one would need to be in order to carry out the office. However, this condition no longer seems to be an obligation once a president is appointed by his or her peers.
If Dijsselbloem was obliged to abandon his post as Dutch finance minister, therefore, he could theoretically remain in position until January 2018, in particular to secure a balance in the distribution of senior European posts between the principal political families. However, this situation would set a precedent, transforming the Eurogroup Presidency into a permanent post equipped with a secretariat in Brussels. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)