French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire and Irish Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe believe that an agreement can be reached by the EU27 over a reform of the European economic governance framework, and this might potentially take place under the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2022.
“We need common rules within a common monetary area”, public debt must be reduced “firmly but gradually” so as not to undermine economic growth, and the rules must support “climate and digital transitions”, said Le Maire after holding a meeting in Paris with the President of the Eurogroup where he presented France’s priorities for the Ecofin Council in early 2022.
Mr Donohoe also noted several challenges to be faced: simplification of fiscal rules, managing high levels of public debt, and investing in future activities. He was happy to note the willingness of the future German government to find European solutions for reforming the Stability and Growth Pact and for completing the banking union in the euro area.
The debate over “the ant and the grasshopper” is irrelevant. The question is rather: ‘How does Europe defend its economic interests against the US and China? How can we become the first decarbonised continent in the world?’, insisted the French minister, who was satisfied that Berlin and Paris share the same objective of “affirming European sovereignty in the years to come”.
Mr Le Maire also called for an agreement in the first half of 2022 in the EU Council over the directive that will introduce Pillar II of the International Tax Reform Agreement into the EU (see EUROPE 12808/2). In his opinion, 2023 is the target date for implementing the international agreement.
Other French priorities cited by Le Maire are the creation of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), the digital euro and a taxonomy, which should, he said, include nuclear energy.
Both ministers were in agreement that despite the resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic and inflation, the basics of economics remained strong. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)