Open Europe press summary: 29 July 2009

Europe

Government reveals City firms contributed £32.5bn in tax revenue in a year;
Refuses to produce Impact Assessment for important new Directive
City AM reports on Open Europe's Freedom of Information request which found that the Government will not conduct an impact assessment on the AIFM Directive before negotiations. It reports:"Chancellor Alistair Darling is refusing to investigate how much European plans to crackdown on hedge funds will cost the industry. The Treasury has admitted it will not carry out an 'impact assessment' on an EU draft law which could damage London's position as a global hedge fund centre by imposing a strict disclosure regime and leverage limits. The government's own guidelines say it should commission a study into any EU legislation that could burden British businesses with extra costs." The article quotes Open Europe Research Director Mats Persson saying, "The UK government is behind the curve on this and they are breaking their own principles on better regulation."

Meanwhile, the Guardian reports that a Parliamentary question from Lord Pearson of Rannoch has revealed that City firms contributed £32.5bn in tax revenue in the year to March 31, 2009 - enough to pay for the entire public security budget - including police, fire brigade, law courts and prisons, according to the paper. However, this is less than half the £67.8bn they brought in two years earlier.

In an interview with the FT Sharon Bowles, the new Lib Dem Chair of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, said that if the EU's proposed Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) was implemented unchanged, European pension funds and institutional investors faced "excommunication" from global capital markets. She also said there was a risk of "unintended consequences" to the draft directive, adding "Now we have to fix bits to make it workable".

The paper reports that one of her first moves as Chair has been to draw committee members' attention to the non-EU aspects of the proposed rule changes, with plans being made to discuss the issues with visiting US congressmen. However, she warned the hedge fund industry against posturing, saying "The UK hedge fund mood music just puts people's backs up". She also said she had sat through several meetings "with the usual suspects saying the same things." She added, "The directive is not only about hedge funds and private equity - it covers everything in between," and urged mainstream investors to "make themselves heard".
CityAM Smart Brief FT FT 2 OE blog Guardian

EU justifies huge propaganda spending as insignificant compared to the rest of EU budget
EUobserver reports that Maria Rankka, Head of the Swedish think-tank Timbro and former speechwriter for Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, has accused the EU of creating an illegitimate "propaganda machine." A recent study from Timbo argues, "The EU, at the tax-payers' expense, actively advocates more European integration and prevents free debate on the future of Europe, extending the limits of what we normally regard as communication". EurActiv quotes the report saying, "the EU wants more integration in Europe, despite the fact that Europeans are more hesitant."

The report draws on research from Open Europe's December 2008 publication, "The hard sell: EU communication policy and the campaign for hearts and minds", which found that the EU spent €2.4 billion on propaganda in 2008 alone. One example found that schools wanting to benefit from Brussels' €69 million a year free milk scheme must display an A3-format poster outside their canteens showing the EU flag and stating that EU money paid for the drink.

Paulina Neuding, from Swedish daily SvD, remarked that the EU's Commissioner for Information, Margot Wallstrom, made matters worse yesterday as she attempted to defend the EU's propaganda effort by suggesting the information budget is insignificant in relation to the size of the whole EU budget.
SvD Timbro's report EU observer EurActiv Open Europe research: The hard sell

EU will renew a deal allowing US officials to scrutinise EU bank activities
In order to prevent funding of terrorist groups, the EU has agreed to further allow US officials to monitor Swift bank transactions in the EU, the BBC reports. The deal has received criticism from EU politicians, with many calling for guarantees that citizens' privacy laws are not being violated.

Handelsblatt reports that the German CSU party plans to veto the re-appointment of Barroso, saying it was "unacceptable" that the US bank scrutiny deal was struck without the consent of the European Parliament. "We must stop the foreign ministers, and ensure a parliamentary reservation for Germany, so that the Bundestag can still undo the worst", CSU leader Alexander Dobrindt said.

In Presseportal, German Green MP Alexander Ulrich says "with regard to handing out Europe's citizens' bank data to US authorities, neither the national nor the European parliament have been consulted", criticising the Commission's dictating role on the basis of the internal market.
BBC Handelsblatt Presseportal Berlin Kontor

EU tries to avoid 'visa war' with Canada
Agence Europe reports that the European Commission and the Swedish EU Presidency are trying to find a solution to a diplomatic row between Canada and the Czech Republic, after Canada unilaterally introduced visas for Czech nationals this month.

The article notes that the Czech Republic has retaliated by imposing visa requirements on Canadian diplomats, a power that still lies with member states, but is unable to unilaterally introduce visas for all Canadian nationals as this would be in violation of Community law. This month, the Vancouver Sun reported that Sweden's Migration and Asylum and Policy Minister Tobias Billstroem indicated that the EU may issue retaliatory measures: "As the presidency of the EU, we are in favour of this reciprocity."
National Post Prague Monitor Vancouver Sun

French EU Affairs Minister: "no enlargement while the Lisbon Treaty is not in force"
At a press conference yesterday, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner addressed whether the European Commission could decide on Iceland's application for EU membership before the end of the year. Kouchner and his colleague European Affairs Minister Pierre Lellouche emphasised that Iceland was not being prioritised over the Balkan countries but that its status would facilitate accession negotiations. However, Lellouche added that there should be "no enlargement while the Lisbon Treaty is not in force".
French government

CSU attacks German Foreign Minister Steinmeier
German FAZ reports that the CSU party blames Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier for neglecting the interest of German bank clients. According to CSU General Secretary Alexander Dobrindt, Steinmeier has committed a grave mistake by giving full authority to the EU Commission on the negotiations concerning the EU-US data sharing agreement. Furthermore, the online press service Berlin Kantor quoted Dobrindt saying "We have to stop the access of US authorities on German bank accounts". Meanwhile, News ad hoc reports that Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Asselborn rejects German criticism on the EU-US data sharing agreement. He emphasizes that the agreement is only valid for one year until the Lisbon Treaty comes into force.
Faz Berlin Kontor News ad hoc

US calls on EU member states to match its humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and Pakistan
The Guardian reports that Barack Obama's special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke, has complained that the fate of 2 million refugees in Pakistan's Swat valley is not being taken seriously enough in Europe, judging by the money being offered to deal with the crisis. Speaking to senior EU and Nato officials in Brussels, he demanded that Europeans "step up to the plate" and at least match the $335m the US has made available.
Guardian

An article in the WSJ reports that EU trade officials approved pre-emptive penalties on imports of steel pipe from China, describing it as "a precedent-setting move that suggests the trading bloc is growing more protectionist in the face of the economic downturn."
WSJ

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana has announced that the EU will train Somali security forces to tackle pirates operating along the country's coast. French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has complained that "France is the only one for the moment that is determined to do anything. I hope that will change."
BBC

According to the Austrian Times, current Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger backed his predecessor Ursula Plassnik to take over from Javier Solana as the EU's High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy and Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union. Solana has said he will step down in October this year and when asked about a replacement Spindelegger said: "Naturally, we have great interest in that post. Plassnik would make a very-good candidate on the basis of her experience."
Austrian Times

Frances opposes outside monitoring for Georgia
EUobserver writes that France has spoken out against proposals to add US or Turkish personnel to the EU monitoring mission in Georgia. Italy, Cyprus and Belgium also voiced opposition to third party deployment. However, The UK, Finland, Lithuania and Estonia are continuing to campaign for outside intervention.
EUobserver Monde

European Voice reports that the EU Commission yesterday released a second instalment of the emergency € 3.1 bn loan package for Latvia, and a first instalment of €1.5 bn of crisis support for Romania. These loans form part of the EU's agreed total of €14.6bn in emergency loans to sovereign states.
European Voice EurActiv FT Figaro

Morocco is the first North African country to be granted a "special status" by the EU. The cooperation between Morocco and the European Union have strengthened in the last decades and now cover a new partnership in economic, trade, socio -ultural issues, as well as political issues.
Le Matin

The Coulisses de Bruxelles blog reviews Belgian MEP and former EU Commission employee Derk-Jan Eppink's new book on "plots, lies and betrayals in the European Commission". The blog notes that Eppink "shows that the complex Brussels machinery is often on autopilot".
Coulisses de Bruxelles

Writing in the FT, former EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti urges key global competition authorities to make a strong pronouncement explaining why continued, vigorous competition enforcement is crucial during the global economic crisis.
FT: Monti

Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said he would push for a sanction plan on Honduras, similar to that issued by the US. The EU has already stopped financial aid to Honduras.
Handelsblatt Reuters Deutschland

La Razon reports that yesterday the EU definitively approved new regulations which oblige rating agencies to register and be monitored. Member states will have six months to apply the new regulations.
La Razon

UK

A ComRes survey for the Independent has put the Conservatives on 42 percent - six points better than when the same poll was taken last month. Labour is on 24 per cent, down one point, and the Liberal Democrats are on 16 percent, down four points. Conservative Home notes that according to UK Polling Report, these figures would compute into a Commons majority of 140 for David Cameron.
Express Conservative Home UK polling report

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