On Thursday 5 July, the European Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, returned a final decision over the membership of the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Mario Draghi, of the 'Group of Thirty' (G30), a private organisation made up of public and private sector bankers.
Considering that the responses submitted by the ECB were unsatisfactory and regretting the monetary institute's “denial” of the implications of this membership, she confirmed her initial observation of misadministration and called once again on Draghi to leave the G30.
Readers may recall that in April, the ECB decided to go against the Ombudsman's recommendation (see EUROPE 11941) by continuing its President's membership (see EUROPE 12004).
The Ombudsman concludes that by giving a “perception that the ECB's independence is undermined”, this decision may harm the ECB's image and public confidence in it. She adds that the ECB should ensure that neither its next President nor any other member of its decision-making bodies join the G30.
However, O'Reilly drew a distinction between membership and participation, considering that under certain conditions, the ECB could participate in certain activities of the G30 without necessarily being a member of it.
In a letter to the chair of the Parliament's committee on economic and monetary affairs to notify him of this decision, she highlights the ECB's misinterpretation of a Parliament resolution dated 6 February.
This resolution stipulates that members of the Governing Council of the ECB should not in principle be members of organisations that include heads of banks supervised by the ECB, “unless such membership is in line with established practice at global level and the ECB participates alongside other central banks, such as the United States Federal reserve”.
The Ombudsman stresses that she does not see how this resolution supports the ECB's position, particularly as the Presidents of the banks referred to are not members of the G30.
The plaintiff association, Corporate Europe Observatory, welcomed the decision, which shows that not only has the ECB ignored the Ombudsman's recommendations, it has also flouted Parliament's calls for it to comply with international best practice. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)