In addition, the ECB has clarified the scope of this prohibition in its Convergence Reports and in the opinions issued in response to consultations on draft legislative provisions submitted to the ECB by the Member States in accordance with Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the TFEU (Convergence Report 2020). 6  firmly entrenched, fiscal consolidation policies will have to be resumed in accordance with the SGP rules. 4 Possible ways to strengthen and enhance the Banco de España’s independence Now I wish to concentrate on a number of possible ways to enhance our independence. These may ultimately also be applicable, in some cases, to other economic supervisors. I will start by referring to the personal independence of the institution’s senior officials. Our current system, whereby it is the Prime Minister who appoints the Governor, is a practice followed in a very high proportion of countries.7 In our case, however, I believe it would be appropriate to grant Parliament a bigger role in the appointment of the Governor, the Deputy Governor and the elected members of the Governing Council, provided in all cases that the process is rapid and that posts are not left vacant. Parliament’s role could be instrumented through appearances in Parliament prior to the appointment, or through confirmation of the appointment or of the suitability and technical and professional sufficiency of the proposed candidates. Involving Parliament in the appointment process would, in my view, raise the public’s perception of the independence and legitimacy of the senior officials.

where DirectorsGeneral, the governing bodies at the proposal of Directors-General or persons responsible for their subsidiary bodies, by delegation or substitution, have made or informed decisions in connection with those banks) Absolute prohibition: banks supervised by the Banco de España or in their economic group, and banks or associations representing the collective interests of the former Private banks, or banks in the same group, affected by decisions in which they have participated  President  3 years  Members  2 years  Any other financial institution, and any entity engaged in lobbying in relation to the ECB, or consultancy and/or advocacy for the ECB, or for financial institutions Counterparties to the Eurosystem in monetary policy or foreign exchange operations Payment or settlement system operators, central counterparties and providers of payment instruments subject to ECB oversight  Significant or less significant credit institutions  Any other financial institution and any entity engaged in lobbying in relation to the ECB, or consultancy and/or advocacy for the ECB, or for financial institutions Counterparties to the Eurosystem in monetary policy or foreign exchange operations Payment or settlement system operators, central counterparties and providers of payment instruments subject to ECB oversight Lobbying its members or staff in connection with matters for which they were responsible within their portfolio Lobbying its members or staff in connection with matters for which they were responsible within their portfolio 10  ANNEX 4 – Governor mandates in European countries: terms of office and renewability Term of office, assuming one renewal,  NCB  Governor’s term of office  Renewable  BE  5 years  YES  10 years  DE  8 years  YES  16 years  EE  7 years  YES  14 years  IE  7 years  YES  14 years  GR  6 years  YES  12 years  ES  6 years  Non-renewable  6 years  FR  6 years  YES (once)  12 years  IT  6 years  YES (once)  12 years  CY  5 years  YES  10 years  LT  5 years  YES (unlimited)  10 years  LV  6 years  YES (unlimited)  12 years  LU  6 years  YES  12 years  MT  5 years  YES  10 years  NL  7 years  YES  14 years  AT  6 years  YES  12 years  PT  5 years  YES (once)  10 years  SI  6 years  YES  12 years  SK  6 years  YES (once)  12 years  FI  7 years  YES  14 years  ECB  8 years  Non-renewable  8 years  UK  8 years  Non-renewable  8 years  if allowed  NOTE: The power to renew terms of office has not been used in SI, MT or CY, while it has been used at least once in DE, AT, BE, EE, SK, LV, LT, LU, FI, FR, GR, NL, IT and PT (and in IE prior to the existence of the Eurosystem).