362 & list _ id = b2e9402e - db05 – 4166 – 9f09 - e1b26a1c6f1b stournaras, y. 2016, monetary policy report 2015 – 2016, speech to the standing committee on economic affairs of the hellenic parliament, athens, 11 july, 2016. w w w. bankofgreece. gr / pages / en / bank / new s / speeches / dispitem. aspx? item _ id = 373 & list _ id = b2e9402e - db05 – 4166 – 9f09 - e1b26a1c6f1b in ’ t veld, j. 2016, public investment stimulus in surplus countries and their euro area spillover, european economic, economic brief 016, august. 7 / 7 bis central bankers'speeches

changes made so far mainly aim at closing loopholes rather than strengthening emu. euro area policy makers cannot rely solely on the ecb and expect that it will keep monetary policy loose indefinitely. efforts should focus on improving the resilience and potential growth of our economies and on reinvigorating real convergence as the way of improving the well - being for all euro area citizens. the time for action is now, because the euro area economy is on a stable footing. first, the economic rebalancing mechanisms ( i. e. the macroeconomic imbalance procedure ) should be reinforced and operate symmetrically, i. e. both for countries with external deficits and for countries with external surpluses. second, the institutional reforms proposed by the five presidents ’ report and the european commission are in the right direction because they will improve economic policy coordination, facilitate convergence and allow for risk reduction and greater private and public risk sharing. the key institutional reforms for the new emu architecture are the following : the creation of a framework for incentivizing structural reforms and aligning national and emu priorities by placing more emphasis on the links between financing via european union ( or euro area ) instruments and initiatives, on the one hand, and reform implementation, on the other ; the completion of the banking and capital markets union ; the creation of a central fiscal - macroeconomic stabilization function ; the adoption of a european safe asset ; the transformation of the esm into a european monetary fund ; the creation of a euro area treasury ; and an increase in the accountability of european institutions to the european parliament. moving forward in this direction would safeguard the monetary union ’ s resilience, its viability and the long - term prosperity of its citizens. 7 / 9 bis central bankers'speeches 7. conclusions over the past seven years, greece has gone a long way in adjusting its major macroeconomic imbalances, reforming its economy and restoring competitiveness. the economy is now recovering and growth is gathering pace. an important factor behind this improvement was the emergence of a strong political consensus in favour of keeping greece in the euro area. in their majority, greek political parties are not only in favour of the euro, but also have supported measures in parliament, sometimes with heavy political and social cost, to ensure that greece remains in the euro area. this new political reality resolves, once and for all, any future uncertainty regarding the course of the country and ensures the implementation of the reforms required for the greek economy to pro