EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 84/554

(2004/C 84 E/0632)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0232/04

by Roger Helmer (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(2 February 2004)

Subject: Euro

Does the Commission agree with former Commission President Jacques Delors, who has been reported as saying that the euro-zone has failed to exploit the economic potential of the single currency, and that therefore, with hindsight, the UK was right to retain the pound and to decline to join the euro?

Does the Commission as a whole agree with current Commission President Romano Prodi, who has said that the Stability and Growth Pact, designed to underpin the single currency, is ‘stupid’?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(25 March 2004)

Exploiting the economic potential of the single currency goes beyond adopting the euro. It implies developing an overall economic strategy aiming at increasing growth potential. This is what the Lisbon European Council's (23/24 March 2000) strategy aims at. Economic reforms to raise Europe's growth potential are a key element of this strategy. Progress in implementing that strategy is reviewed each year by the Spring European Council on the basis of a Commission Report. The latest Spring Report, adopted by the Commission on 21 January 2004 concludes that although progress has been made in a number of key fields, the implementation of the reforms by the Member States does not measure up to the task, and a number of sectors are even encountering significant difficulties.

Nevertheless, there has been some progress in job creation: 6 million jobs created since 1999, in spite of the economic slowdown; significant improvements in long-term unemployment and the rate of female employment; opening up to competition of several strategic network markets (telecommunications, energy, rail freight, etc.); internet take-up in schools, businesses, public administrations and households.

The Commission has always said that the United Kingdom will be welcomed in the euro area if it meets the convergence criteria as laid down by the EC Treaty, should the United Kingdom decide that it wishes to adopt the euro. On 9 June 2003 the United Kingdom Government also published its own assessment of its five economic tests for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) entry, acknowledging the benefits from adopting the euro but deeming that the moment was not ripe.

On 27 November 2002 the Commission adopted a communication laying down proposals to reinforce the co-ordination of budgetary policies (1). The proposals aimed at strengthening the economic rationale underpinning budgetary policy decisions as part of general strategy to strengthen economic policy co-ordination, putting more emphasis on the interrelation between budgetary policy and the need for structural reforms in the Union.

On 13 January 2004, the Commission further adopted a three-pronged strategy to clarify and improve economic policy coordination and surveillance (2). As part of this strategy, based on the experience of the five first years of EMU and building on the November 2002 Communication, the Commission, will make new proposals for the strengthening of economic governance in the future. Improvements in the implementation of the Stability and Growth Pact will form part of this initiative.

(1) COM(2002) 668 final.

(2) See also answer to Written Question E-4071/03 by Mr Ribeiro e Castro, See page 520.