Annexes to COM(2017)823 - European minister of economy and finance - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2017)823 - European minister of economy and finance. |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2017)823  |
| date | December 6, 2017 |
The Minister as Vice-President of the Commission
Given the Commission’s institutional role as promoter of the general interest, a Vice-President of the Commission could take over the role as European Minister of Economy and Finance.
This would allow for the creation of a visibly mandated and unified representative of the economic and fiscal interests of the whole EU and the euro area, which also serves as a key point of reference inside and outside the Commission.
The Minister could steer and coordinate the work of several policy portfolios and services across the Commission. He/she would represent the Commission in the meetings of the European Central Bank’s Governing Council, without the right to vote, as it is foreseen in Article 284(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. He/she would also be responsible for EU-level social dialogue and interaction with key stakeholders.
The Minister as Chair of the Eurogroup
The European Minister of Economy and Finance could be elected as President of the Eurogroup, with a view to taking into account the interests of the euro area as a whole. The Eurogroup has until now been chaired by a finance minister of a euro area Member State. As President of the Eurogroup, the Minister would present and seek consensus on the broad policy direction and the overall strategy for the euro area, by helping to balance and align the points of views of national ministers with the shared priorities pursued at euro area and EU level. The Minister would also ensure the coherent preparation of Euro Summit meetings.
The role of the Eurogroup and its President over time
The Eurogroup is an informal body where the finance ministers of the euro area Member States discuss matters under their shared responsibilities related to the euro. Its main task is to ensure close coordination of economic policies among euro area Member States, in full respect of the powers attributed to the Council under Article 121 TFEU.
The European Council endorsed the creation of the Eurogroup on 13 December 1997. 16 In a resolution on economic policy coordination, the Council concluded that “the Ministers of the States participating in the euro area may meet informally among themselves to discuss issues connected with their shared specific responsibilities for the single currency.” The Eurogroup held its first meeting on 4 June 1998. In its early years, the Eurogroup was chaired by the rotating Council Presidency, except where the Council Presidency was held by a non-euro area Member State, in which case the chair was held by the next euro area country that would hold the Council Presidency.
On 10 September 2004, the Eurogroup decided to have a permanent President, appointed for a period of two years. At an informal ECOFIN meeting in Scheveningen, in the Netherlands, Jean-Claude Juncker was elected as the first permanent President of the Eurogroup.
Protocol 14 on the Eurogroup entered into force with the Lisbon Treaty on 1 December 2009.
It stipulates that Ministers of Member States whose currency is the euro shall meet informally to discuss matters related to the specific responsibilities they share with regard to the single currency and shall elect a President for two and a half years by a simple majority of votes.
Since October 2008, regular meetings of the euro area Heads of State or Government had taken place. At their meeting on 26 October 2011, Heads of State or Government agreed that a decision on whether the President of the Eurogroup is to be elected “among its members or be a full-time President based in Brussels will be taken at the time of the expiry of the mandate of the current incumbent.” It was also agreed that the Eurogroup Working Group would prepare Eurogroup meetings, drawing on the expertise provided by the Commission. It was furthermore clarified that the Eurogroup Working Group would be chaired by a full-time Brussels-based President elected,
in principle, at the same time as the chair of the Economic and Financial Committee, for a period of two years, which may be extended. 17
The Eurogroup could agree to elect the Minister as its President for the whole duration of the Commission’s mandate. This would be compatible with the Minister’s duties as a member of the Commission, representing the general interest, and would not require a Treaty revision. 18
The European Minister would be supported in the preparation of Eurogroup meetings by
the permanent Chairman of the Economic and Financial Committee/Eurogroup Working Group and a Secretariat building on all available expertise, making sure that no additional structures are created or duplicated. 19
The Minister overseeing the work of the European Monetary Fund
The President of the Eurogroup currently chairs the Board of Governors of the European Stability Mechanism. The latter was put in place during the crisis on an intergovernmental basis as a way to provide support to those Member States facing financial distress. Building on the European Stability Mechanism, the Commission proposes today to integrate the European Monetary Fund into the Union legal framework. 20
As President of the Eurogroup, the Minister would then also chair the Board of Governors of the European Monetary Fund. In so doing, the Minister would exercise a neutral role, taking into account the interests of the shareholders of the European Monetary Fund in a balanced manner.
Accountability towards the European Parliament
The Commission is accountable towards the European Parliament. Members of the Commission also actively engage with the European Parliament on economic and fiscal matters, notably through the Economic Dialogues set out in the “Six-Pack” and “Two-Pack” legislation. 21 The Eurogroup and the European Stability Mechanism engage with the European Parliament on a voluntary basis.
The Minister would be accountable towards the European Parliament on all issues related to its functions and would also be available for dialogues with national Parliaments. As a member of the College of Commissioners, the Minister would be subject to a hearing by the European Parliament. After a vote of consent, the Minister would be appointed as part of the Commission College.
The Minister would continue to have regular dialogues with the European Parliament and with national Parliaments. Furthermore, in line with the existing process for examining the Draft Budgetary Plans of euro area Member States, national Parliaments could request the Minister to present the Commission opinion on the respective Draft Budgetary Plan to them.
4.CONCLUSIONS
The Commission considers that the position of a European Minister of Economy and Finance would be an important institutional step for a more coherent, effective and accountable economic governance of the European Union.
It calls on the European Parliament and the Council, as well as on the Member States, to reflect on the ideas expressed in this Communication, with a view to building a common understanding in the context of the discussion on the deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union foreseen in the Leader’s Agenda.
Within the existing Treaties, such a position could be created sequentially, according to the following timeline:
·The function of the Minister as Vice-President of the Commission could be established as part of the appointment of the next Commission as from November 2019.
·The Eurogroup could agree to elect the Minister as its President for two consecutive mandates, thus agreeing on an alignment of its mandate with the mandate of the Commission.
(1)
President Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the Union Address 2017, 13 September 2017.
(2)
COM(2017) 291, 31 May 2017.
(3)
Completing Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union, Report by Jean-Claude Juncker, in close cooperation with Donald Tusk, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, Mario Draghi and Martin Schulz, 22 June 2015.
(4)
In its resolution of 16 February 2017 on possible evolutions of and adjustments to the current institutional set-up of the European Union, the European Parliament called for “an executive authority [of the Union] to be concentrated in the Commission in the role of an EU Finance Minister”.
(5)
During the Euro Summit on 26 October 2011, Heads of State or Government of the Euro Area agreed on ten measures to improve the governance of the euro area, where it was agreed that a decision on whether the President of the Eurogroup “should be elected among Members of the Eurogroup or be a full-time President based in Brussels will be taken at the time of the expiry of the mandate of the current incumbent”.
(6)
See also COM(2015) 602 final of 21 October 2015 on a roadmap for moving towards a more consistent external representation of the euro area in international fora and COM(2015) 603 final of 21 October 2015 on a Commission proposal for a Council Decision laying down measures in view of progressively establishing unified representation of the euro area in the International Monetary Fund.
(7)
COM(2017) 825 and COM(2017) 826 of 6 December 2017.
(8)
Also the G20 Leaders’ declaration of 8 July 2017 underlined the need to use fiscal policy – next to monetary and structural policies – individually and collectively to achieve the goal of strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth, while enhancing economic and financial resilience.
(9)
COM(2015) 12 final, 13 January 2015.
(10)
The “fiscal stance” is usually understood as the orientation given to fiscal policy by governments’ discretionary decisions on tax and expenditure. It determines the role that fiscal policy plays in the economic cycle. If well designed, notably in combination with reforms and support to investment as well as the help of a future fiscal stabilisation function, a more active fiscal policy can contribute to a faster reduction in unemployment in the short run, but also to lift the medium-term (potential) growth in the euro area. See also COM(2016) 727 final, 16 November 2016.
(11)
The board is an independent advisory body to the Commission on fiscal matters with the purpose of achieving a more informed public debate and better coordination of national fiscal policies.
(12)
See also Commission Reflection Paper on EU public finances, COM(2017) 358, 28 June 2017.
(13)
COM(2017) 822 of 6 December 2017.
(14)
The Investment Plan for Europe was launched by the Commission together with the European Investment Bank with a view to stimulating private investment in the EU economy and to tackling investment barriers, and significant first results have been achieved with EUR 251 billion of investments mobilised so far.
(15)
Eurogroup ministers would only need to change their working methods, which are agreed informally,
by simple majority. These working methods currently foresee that candidates for the office of President must hold the position of national minister of finance.
(16)
European Council, Presidency conclusions, Luxembourg, 12-13 December 1997.
(17)
In May 2013, France and Germany also presented their joint paper “Together for a stronger Europe of Stability and Growth”. It proposed to strengthen the governance of the euro area “after the next European elections. […] This could include:[…] a full-time President for the Eurogroup”.
(18)
The Commission participates in the work of the Eurogroup, as is foreseen in Protocol No 14 to the Treaties. Article 17(1) TEU lays down the mission of the Commission to promote the common interest of the Union, which it does in all its activities. It is thus Union primary law that makes it clear that there is no incompatibility between the tasks of a Member of the Commission and involvement in the work of the Eurogroup.
(19)
The work of the Eurogroup is prepared by the Eurogroup Working Group (EWG). The EWG and
the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC) are chaired by a permanent chairperson since 2012. Hosted in
the Council, the EFC/EWG Chair is assisted by a secretariat whose staff is mainly supplied by and based in the Commission. This organisation has allowed synergies and proven to be efficient. It could be further developed with the creation of the European Minister for Economy and Finance.
(20)
COM(2017) 827 of 6 December 2017.
(21)
Regulations (EU) n° 1173/2011, 1174/2011, 1175/2011, 1176/2011, 1177/2011, 472/2013 and 473/2013.