Brussels, 01/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - Following their meeting in Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced that, on Tuesday 1 September, they would send a joint letter to the Swedish Presidency setting out their priorities ahead of the G20 summit in Pittsburgh on 24-25 September. The aim of this move is to make similar progress on the issue of financial bonuses to that which was recorded on the exchange of tax information at the London summit in early April. “We met today mainly to work together to prepare for the G20 meeting. Germany and France decided to take a joint initiative to the Swedish Presidency: this Tuesday, we are going to send a letter calling for a joint EU position,” Merkel said after the meeting. Calling for the London summit decisions (see EUROPE 9875) to be implemented in full, she spoke of two areas in which progress was “absolutely vital”: - “No bank should ever become so big that it can bring pressure to bear on governments” forcing a bail out to prevent the collapse of the financial system; - “bonuses” paid to those working in finance to prevent failed banks once again acting as if the crisis had never happened.
“Germany and France want things to change in Pittsburgh, and want the international community to understand that the speculation and financial excesses, which led to the crisis, cannot continue as if nothing had happened. We want to end the scandal of the bonuses paid out,” said Sarkozy. In Germany, measures taken relate to the bonuses of the heads of the major banks which can only be paid after a period of four years. The German banking regulator has adopted criteria that link financial risk-taking and the payment of bonuses, and can impose more severe capital requirements on banks that take excessive risks. French measures announced refer to bonuses paid to traders, which are linked to performance over a set period of time (bonus-malus principle). The countries each intend to adopt the steps taken by the other. “Let me make it clear: we will apply these measures no matter what the others decide to do,” Sarkozy said, warning “those who don't want to do as much on regulation” of the judgment that international public opinion will deliver. He said that the extraordinary European Council convened to agree the European position for the G20 summit would discuss the Franco-German proposals “on 17 September”. (M.B./transl.rt)