On Thursday 25 April, the organisation for the protection of the interests of consumers of financial products, Finance Watch, examined the manifestos and commitments of European political parties in view of the European elections and ranked them according to their proposals regarding financial reform.
European political parties were rated on their proposals in four main priority areas for Finance Watch, namely: - stabilize the financial system; - democratise the financial institutions as well as financial policy making; - re-direct capital to a sustainable economy; - prepare for a future financial crisis. The percentage allocated indicates the extent to which the parties' commitments correspond to the organization's requests in these areas.
In terms of proposals to make the financial system more stable, the Party of European Socialists (PES) is at the top of the list (67%), with its proposals to strengthen the rules applicable to the banking and financial sectors and the introduction of a new economic model to combine social progress, economic development and environmental stability.
The PES is followed by the European Green Party (EGP) and The Party of the European Left, both with a score of 55%. The European People's Party (EPP), the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), on the other hand, are on the sidelines in this area, with a score of 0%.
For Finance Watch, it is also necessary to “democratise” the process with more mission-oriented financial institutions, such as public banks, development banks, cooperatives and impact investors.
Here, the Party of the European Left is the best placed, with 70%, followed by the Greens (53%), closely followed by the PES (52%). ACRE scores -2% and the EPP and ALDE score -4%, as they propose, according to the organisation, counter-productive measures such as limiting potential public spending capacities.
Another key priority for the organization is to redirect capital flows from unsustainable credit and investment to sustainable and socially responsible credit and investment, particularly to combat climate change and restore and conserve biodiversity and ecosystems. Here again, the Party of the European Left best meets expectations (77%), followed by the PES (61%), the Greens (33%), the ALDE (17%), the EPP (11%) and ACRE (0%).
Finally, in answer to the question ‘Which party would best prepare the European financial system for the next financial crisis?’, Finance Watch replied that it is the PES at 35%, which advocates increased financial regulation, more guarantees that the banking sector will pay the price for bank failures and more security for depositors and their savings. Next come the EPP (31%), the Party of the European Left (29%), the ALDE (14%), the Greens (14%) and ACRE (2%).
It should be noted that the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy (EFDD) and the Movement for a Europe of Nations and Freedom (MENF) have neither published a manifesto nor responded to the organisation's requests, says Finance Watch. The analysis can be found at: https://bit.ly/2VrjRwJ. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)