European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication on strengthening economic policy coordination within the euro area (COM(2001) 82 - C5-0173/2001 - 2001/2083(COS))
Date: 2001-10-04
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Economic and Monetary Union, Eurogroup (NATO), coordination of EMU policies, economic policy, economic situation, euro area, participating country (euro area)

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7. Strengthening economic policy coordination within the euro area

A5-0307/2001

European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication on strengthening economic
policy coordination within the euro area (COM(2001) 82 & C5-0173/2001 & 2001/2083(COS))

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to the Commission communication (COM(2001) 82 (cid:1) C5-0173/2001),

(cid:1) having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A5-0307/2001),

A.

convinced that the introduction of euro coins and notes will fundamentally change the current politi-
cal conditions for economic policy coordination among the Member States within the euro area, and
their responsibilities towards the European citizens concerned,

B. whereas, in order to boost economic growth potential in the euro area, this new situation will require
the Member States to create jobs and improve the quality of life, devise a more coherent political
framework, in particular through the introduction of more sophisticated and more effective multi-
lateral monitoring instruments, gradually adopt more binding coordination mechanisms and open a
wider-ranging and more extensive democratic debate,

C. noting that, although coordination procedures have developed since June 1998, in too many cases the
main economic policy decisions of the Member States in the euro area are still taken without inform-
ing others beforehand and are only discussed after the event,

D. whereas the economic decisions taken by all the Member States in the euro area, particularly the most
economically powerful ones, have repercussions on the global economy of the area, especially when
they concern budgetary, tax and structural questions,

E. whereas statistical information in the European Union, and hence in the euro area, is uneven, piece-
meal and produced too slowly, compared to other industrialised countries such as the United States,

F. whereas efforts to improve economic policy coordination should also focus on measures designed to

strengthen the external dimension of the euro area,

1. Welcomes the Commission communication and agrees with its diagnosis regarding the need to
strengthen economic policy coordination among the Member States in the euro area as EMU moves into
its third stage;

2.
Believes that, in order to strengthen economic policy coordination within the euro area, on the one
hand the Eurogroup and its president must play an enhanced and higher-profile role and, on the other, the
Commission must fully exercise its right of initiative in line with the role assigned to it by the Treaty;
considers that this enhanced coordination should eventually take the form of an amendment to the Treaty
or an interinstitutional agreement assigning an increased role to the European Parliament;

3.
Insists that the Member States manifest their commitments to the Lisbon process, which aims at
making Europe the most competitive knowledge-driven economy in the world, by including concrete
measures to this effect in the broad economic policy guidelines as well as in their national policies;

4.
Proposes that information exchange between the Member States of the euro area on their tax
policies, and in particular anticipated tax revenue, proposed reforms and their budgetary consequences,
should be stepped up and that the allocation of fortuitous or exceptional tax revenue should be the subject
of prior discussion between the States concerned;

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5.
Calls on the Member States and the Commission to reaffirm their support for Eurostat to improve its
capacity for compiling harmonised and rapidly available statistical information and commit themselves to
developing a genuine European statistical architecture;

6. Welcomes the Commission’s proposal to publish a regular report on the euro area economy, suggests
that this report should appear on a quarterly basis, be submitted to the competent committee of the
European Parliament and then be immediately available to the public, and hopes that it will not be merely
a compilation of statistical data, but rather will reflect the analyses and innovative proposals made and the
illustrating the useful contribution the Commission is making in the field of
medium-term prospects,
economic policy;

7.
Proposes that the principle that the Member States of the Eurogroup should inform each other
beforehand regarding their draft decisions should be adopted systematically, particularly on matters of
taxation and structural questions; calls on the Commission, where appropriate to undertake an assessment
of the impact of these proposals on the euro area economy, as part of the process of monitoring the
Lisbon strategy and preparing the broad economic policy guidelines;

8.
Calls on the Commission, when implementing the Lisbon strategy, to play a full part in encouraging
the introduction of open coordination between the Member States of the euro area, especially as regards
revenue, training and trade policy, with particular reference to the supply of raw materials;

Recalls the concern expressed in its resolution of 14 July 1998 (1) on the Commission communi-
9.
cation on the detailed provosions concerning the composition of the Economic and Financial Committee
accompanied by a proposal for a Council decision on the detailed provisions concerning the composition
of the Economic and Financial Committee (COM(1998) 110 (cid:1) C4-0222/1998) that the efficiency of the
Economic Policy Committee and Economic and Financial Committee should be enhanced by streamlining
their organisation and responsibilities, to ensure that greater account is taken of structural questions with a
view to coordinating economic policies and mapping out common medium-term strategies;

Supports the Commission’s proposal that use could be made of the Treaty provisions concerning
10.
enhanced cooperation (Articles 43, 44 and 45) to improve the range of instruments available for streng-
thening economic policy coordination;

Calls on the Eurogroup presidency to publicise its work more effectively and to agree to a twice-
11.
yearly dialogue with Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs to keep it informed of the
measures it has taken to implement economic policy coordination in the euro area, and of the effects such
coordination has had on the real economy, in particular concerning employment and quality of life for the
citizens;

12.
Suggests that the national budgetary procedures of the Member States in the euro area should
incorporate the recommendations in the broad general economic policy guidelines as adopted by the
Council and refined by the Eurogroup if necessary, to ensure that they are implemented correctly;

13.
Stresses the importance for the Commission’s assessment of both sound public finances and appro-
priate macroeconomic policies of reaching a common understanding by the Commission, the European
Central Bank and the Member States about the effects of each economy’s business cycle on tax revenues
and public spending; urges the Commission and the finance ministries to intensify their work in this area
as a fundamental building block of euro-area economic policy;

14.
Calls for enhancement of the macroeconomic dialogue with the involvement of the European Par-
liament; considers in addition, that an interinstitutional agreement between the Council, the Commission
and the European Parliament should be concluded here on the enhancement and improvement of macro-
economic coordination in the European Union, this being also very much the basis for a confidence-build-
ing and sustainable economic and employment climate for all affected economic operators in Europe;

15.
Recommends that the national parliaments should hold an annual debate at the time when their
governments submit their respective stability programmes, as this hopefully would lead to greater consist-
ency between declarations at EU summits and decisions in national parliaments;

(1) OJ C 292, 21.9.1998, p. 36.

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16.
Calls also on the national parliaments, in the form of their respective competent committees, the
Commission, the presidency of the Council and the Eurogroup, and the European Central Bank to hold an
annual meeting during a European Parliament part-session at the time of the preparation of the broad
economic policy guidelines in order to discuss them;

17.
Considers that for their part the national parliaments should draw up an annual assessment of the
implementation of the broad economic policy guidelines in their country and of their participation in the
coordination of the economic policies of the Member States of the euro area, which they could debate
annually with the European Parliament;

18.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Eurogroup presidency, the
Commission, the European Central Bank and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and
candidate countries.

8. Growth and employment: improving quality and sustainability

A5-0306/2001

European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication on the contribution of public
improving quality and sustainability (COM(2000) 846 &
finances to growth and employment:

C5-0172/2001 & 2001/2082(COS))

The European Parliament,

(cid:1) having regard to the Commission communication (COM(2000) 846 (cid:1) C5-0172/2001),

(cid:1) having regard the Conclusions of the European Council held in Lisbon on 23/24 March 2000 (1),

(cid:1) having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

(cid:1) having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the opinion of

the Committee on Budgets A5-0306/2001,

A. whereas the over-extension of public expenditures in continental Europe over the past thirty years has
forced European governments to raise their taxes to an unbearable level, sapping potential growth in
the process,

B. whereas, facing the problems of uncertain financing of tax reform, brisk growth of spending or poss-
ible budgetary target overruns, the three biggest states of the euro area risk falling short of the provi-
sions of the Stability and Growth Pact, which sets as an objective a position ‘close to balance’ or ‘in
surplus’,

C. whereas the failure of public investment to revive economic growth on a sustainable basis in Japan
should induce policy-makers to operate with the utmost caution when designing such measures,

D. noting with interest from the Commission report that the so-called decline of public investment in

Europe may be purely statistical,

E. whereas many European governments have relaxed their budgetary efforts since 1998, relying mainly

on cyclical receipts and UMTS proceeds to reduce public deficit and public debt,

F. whereas the 60 % threshold of public debt provides already considerable room for Member States
wishing to invest, and crossing this threshold bears the risk of being cornered into an unsustainable
fiscal position in a medium to long-term perspective,

(1) SN 100/00.