the fluctuation bands of the exchange rate mechanism. only the tight link between the dutch guilder and the deutsche mark, sealed with an exchange of letters between the deutsche bundesbank and de nederlandsche bank, survived this storm. apparently, the credibility of dutch monetary policy was restored again. in parallel to these developments, a vision even more daring than the close link between the dutch and german currencies was gaining the attention and support of european leaders : the introduction of a single currency in europe. one of its fathers, the former prime minister of luxembourg pierre werner, only very recently passed away. it is unfortunate that his proposal to achieve monetary union by the end of the 1970s did not succeed, and i take this opportunity to pay him the tribute he deserves. but this failure probably did not harm europe, because at the time the single market was far from completion. indeed, the political aspirations behind a single currency in europe were running too far ahead of the economic realities. by contrast, failing to introduce a single currency following the maastricht treaty would have been considerably more damaging. the path towards a single currency was a tortuous one. the whole plan, laid down in the werner report, was put aside amid the global currency turmoil in the early 1970s and the subsequent economic recession. but the vision of establishing a single currency in europe gained new momentum after the ratification of the single european act in 1987, which laid the foundations for the european single market. the idea, rightly so in my view, was that it would not be possible to reap all the benefits from an internal market if it were still subject to exchange rate fluctuations. moreover, the free movement of capital, fixed exchange rates and sovereign national monetary policies were generally regarded as mutually incompatible. ( a view first expressed by my colleague on the executive board of the ecb, tommaso padoa - schioppa ). the initiatives taken at that time, however, would not have been possible without the political will and courage to create a single currency in europe. indeed, this process, which eventually led to the introduction of the euro banknotes and coins on 1 january of this year, required considerable resolve on the part of the german government. in the run - up to the introduction of the euro, germany proved to be a staunch supporter of a single currency enshrined in a stability - oriented culture. the internal value of the single currency would have to be at least as stable as that

vitor constancio : securities settlement in 2020 – t2s and beyond speech by mr vitor constancio, vice - president of the european central bank, at the ecb ’ s conference on “ securities settlement in 2020 – t2s and beyond ”, frankfurt am main, 4 october 2011. * * * i am very pleased for the opportunity to be with you here today. as you might know, the president ’ s visit to the european parliament for the last monetary dialogue of his tenure was rescheduled at the last minute, so it was not possible for him to participate tonight. he sends his apologies and wishes you a very interesting and fruitful conference. in my remarks this afternoon, i would like to focus on the importance of strengthening the single market, the various initiatives currently being pursued for this purpose, and how t2s fits into the wider picture. the single market, and the single financial market in particular, has been one of the great success stories of the eu. since the project began with jacques delors ’ s white paper in 1985 and almost 20 years since the 1992 programme was completed, it has delivered enormous economic, financial and social benefits to the citizens of europe. the euro has played a major role in delivering the benefits of a single market. it has ensured price stability, removed exchange rate uncertainty and reduced transaction costs. all this is conducive to an integrated market. in times of urgency, we may sometimes take for granted the benefits that the single market has already brought. freedom of goods, freedom of services, freedom of capital, and freedom of people. indeed, in recent years we have been observing sometimes less focus on the need for further progress in the single market and even protectionist tendencies, which were also exacerbated by concerns raised by the financial crisis. however, the financial crisis should instead serve as a powerful reminder that only a fully fledged integrated single market can provide the resilience that we need to withstand future shocks. the single market act, launched in april by the european commission is therefore very much welcomed to provide impetus to the reinforcement of the project. this is also what is wished by citizens, since the very recent eurobarometer survey of 26 september shows that there are still important gaps between expectations and the reality of the single market : information gaps affecting citizens and authorities, gaps in the implementation of european policy, and gaps in the european legislative framework. against this background, i would like to highlight the progress made