WRITTEN QUESTION P-1544/00

by Vitaliano Gemelli (PPE-DE) to the Council

(12 May 2000)

Subject: Economic and monetary policies

The continuing decline of the euro against the dollar is causing serious anxiety for Europeans in a great many walks of life. People in various quarters including political, economic, social, and financial circles are calling for detailed explanations of the EU's economic and monetary strategy, but the Commission is churning out a spate of reassuring messages and the Council is ignoring the problem altogether. The ECB just keeps raising the rates time after time, clearly demonstrating that it has no economic and monetary strategy, since it is resorting to standard technical shifts divorced from a broad economic perspective. Although the rate increases reduce the risk of inflation, they are undoubtedly discouraging firms from using the euro for their corporate investment. This money is absolutely essential to help speed up economic modernisation and solve the problem of mass unemployment in Europe, which certainly cannot be termed a cyclical phenomenon, but rather results from the numerous forms of structural inflexibility and the failure of the Member States to harmonise their economic, financial, fiscal, and social policies. The philosophy underlying these policies to date has been one of scepticism, protectionism, short-sightedness, and ideological archaism, preventing calm debate aimed at achieving competitiveness on the world market.

Can the Council inform:

- What are the main lines of the economic and monetary strategy that the Council intends to implement?

- Which European political authority determines EU economic and monetary policy, without encroaching on the technical and operational independence of the ECB?

- What measures will be taken in the EU and the Member States to modernise and develop the European economy?

- How will Europe's huge unemployment problem be resolved without undermining or departing from the rules governing migration and residence of non-Community nationals?

- What role does the Council think the applicant countries should play in bringing about enlargement under, it is to be hoped, the most favourable conditions and as quickly as possible in an EU offering a propitious economic climate and a sense of security and stability as it seeks to improve the quality of life for European citizens?

- What proposals will the Council make to the United States, Canada, Japan, Russia, China, and all world economic powers with a view to opening negotiations aimed at stabilising the financial and money markets and shielding citizens, investors, and savers from the dangers of possibly fatal crashes that could even jeopardise global civil society?

Reply

(26 September 2000)

In the broad guidelines of the economic policies of the Member States and of the Community for 1999/2000, adopted by the Council on 12 July 1999(1), the Council underlined that strong, sustainable growth and employment constitute the main priority and that growth and stability-oriented macroeconomic policies and comprehensive and co-ordinated economic reforms are the main means.

Furthermore, although the Council itself has not taken a position on the recent developments of the external value of the euro, it may be pointed out that the Euro 11 group, on 8 May, issued the following statement:

The Euro 11 Ministers and Commissioner, and the President of the ECB share the view that growth is very robust in the euro area; an increasing number of jobs is being created. The ECB is committed to ensure that this growth will remain non-inflationary. Ministers are determined to speed up ongoing fiscal consolidation

and structural reforms towards a knowledge-based, full-employment economy according to the orientations set by the special European Council in Lisbon, thus increasing the growth potential of our economies.

In this context, we share a common concern about the present level of the euro which does not reflect the strong economic fundamentals of the euro area.

(1) OJ L 217, 17.08.1999, p. 34.