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Open Europe press summary: 30 April 2010

Europe
 
Clegg backs down on euro manifesto pledge
A ComRes survey for ITV declared David Cameron the winner of last night's final leaders' debate on 35, with Nick Clegg on 33 and Gordon Brown on 26. A YouGov poll for the Sun also declared Cameron the winner on 41, with Clegg on 32 and Brown on 25. A Populus poll for the Times gave joint victory to Clegg and Cameron with 38 each, leaving Gordon Brown on 25.
 
During the debate David Cameron said: "people need to know that the Liberal Democrats, in their manifesto, are still in favour of joining the euro...if we were in the euro now, your taxes, your national insurance would not be going on hospitals and schools and police officers, they would be going to Greece, and possibly other countries as well, and that's why I say one of the lessons to learn is let's stay out of the euro, let's keep our own currency and let's recognise what a massive strategic error the Liberal Democrats would have made."
 
In response Nick Clegg said, "No I'm not advocating entry into the euro, I would only ever advocate it by the way, if ever, if the economic conditions were right. If it was good for your jobs, good for pensions, good for savings, and of course it always has to be only decided, if we were ever to do that as a country, on a referendum where you can vote on it." The Lib Dems' manifesto states: "We believe that it is in Britain's long-term interest to be part of the euro."
 
Speaking on the BBC Today programme this morning Lib Dem Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "We've never argued in recent years that this would be a good time to join the euro...we're certainly not pursuing entry into the euro in the Parliament we're talking about now".
 
When asked whether Britain would have joined the euro by now if there had been a referendum 10 years ago and the Lib Dems had been in control, Vince Cable replied: "It depends entirely how the circumstances would have evolved over the last ten years."
 
The Economist has today endorsed the Conservatives to win the election, and in its leader it argues that the Lib Dems' "policies seem less appealing. In the event of another European treaty, they would hold a referendum not on that treaty but on whether to stay in or leave the EU; odd given that they also (wrongly) want to take Britain into the euro."
 
Following the debate, Nick Clegg was also accused of getting his statistics wrong on the number of immigrants in the UK who come from the EU, suggesting it was 80%, although official figures suggest the figure is less than 40%.
Times Independent Economist: Leader Guardian WSJ: Martin Telegraph Express Telegraph 2 Guardian Sun BBC: Today programme OE briefing
 
German MP: Bundestag will be approving bailout against the "very, very great majority" of the German population;
Bailout plan could be presented tonight
Jean-Pierre Jouyet, former French Europe Minister and Chairman of French regulator AFM, has told RMC Radio, "What the markets are looking for is the plan, which will be presented tonight or over the weekend. It will be done, it is almost completed. I have no doubt about that." The eurozone/IMF bailout package will be in the area of €100-€120 billion, according to most reports in the European media. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is quoted in Focus saying, "We can count on a result in the next few days. Then we'll be able to put a legislative process in action in Germany. But all in the right order."
 
According to an Emnid Poll, 76% of Germans fear that Greece will not be able to pay back the loans it will be given, reports Stern. The Guardian notes that polls show that between 66% and 86% of Germans are against a Greek bailout, while the IHT quotes Frank Schäffler, an FDP member of the Finance Committee in the German Parliament, saying, "The population in Germany is with a very, very great majority against, and the Parliament will probably approve it with a very great majority."
 
In an interview with Die Welt, Frank Walter Steinmeir, leader of the SPD opposition, said, "The Chancellor has wasted precious time, letting herself be celebrated as 'Madame No' for days on end. Publicly, she made out as if she were against European help for Greece, while at the same time signaling to the EU that she supported a European aid package. That was two faced." He also accused Merkel of stalling for time ahead of the forthcoming regional elections on 9 May.
 
The FT reports that Greece has agreed the outline of a €24bn austerity package, including a three-year wage freeze for public sector workers.
FT Die Welt Die Welt 2 Guardian Guardian 2 Reuters  Stern  Focus
 
Greek bail-out: comment round-up
In the Guardian, Larry Elliott looks at whether Greece could and should leave the eurozone, noting "The short answer to the question of how a country would leave the euro is: with extreme difficulty, at considerable cost and only as a last resort. It would first have to consider the three Ds - devaluation, debt and default." He also notes that "There are no contingencies for a country that wants to leave." Open Europe's Mats Persson is quoted saying, "There is no mechanism on the table [for leaving the euro] at all. They haven't thought about it." Mats is also quoted saying that in the long-term, "an alternative would be for the eurozone to split into a German-led inner core and an outer core made of a weaker group of countries, which would not include Greece." Mats also appeared on BBC Oxford radio this morning, arguing that the case for the UK joining the euro is "getting weaker by the day".
 
German tabloid Bild argues "If [Greece] reintroduced the drachma, that's the best possible thing that could happen to our euro".
 
A leader in the Economist argues that the eurozone debt crisis looks "dangerously close" to spreading to Spain, Portugal and Italy. It argues: "The priority for European policymakers is to do the same as governments eventually did with the banks: to get ahead of the crisis and to convince investors that they will spend whatever is necessary."
 
In the Times, Bill Emmott argues that Northern Europeans will "have to grit their teeth and accept the need to exclude Greece from the euro, at least until such time as it is able to meet the single currency's rules."
 
A leader in the FT argues that "the EU's shambolic response to the crisis" has rattled investors, while the WSJ quotes Alessandro Leipold, a former acting director of the International Monetary Fund's European Department, saying, "The Greek crisis has been so severely mishandled by European policy makers that the markets legitimately fear that matters are now beyond repair."
TheTimesPolska TheTimesPolska Irish Times Le Monde Irish Times 2 Le Monde 2 Times FT 2 City AM EurActiv BBC FT: Leader WSJ: Fidler Conservative Home: Lilico WSJ: Kaminski Guardian: Elliott FT 3 FT: Stephens FT: Peel EUobserver European Voice BBC: Hewitt blog EUobserver 2 Economist: Charlemagne Economist Times: Emmott Independent Independent: O'Grady FT 4 WSJ WSJ: Editorial WSJ: Analysis IHT IHT 2 Irish Independent AFP Le Figaro Irish Times 3 NouvelObs Reuters Le Monde Le Parisien Economist: Leader FAZ FTD Focus  Sueddeutsche Reuters Bild 
 
Belgian daily Het Nieuwsblad reports on Open Europe's findings that Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg owned a house in Brussels which he later sold for a profit of about €350,000, while receiving thousands of pounds in accomodation allowances as an MEP.
Nieuwsblad
 
EU Foreign Minister Cathy Ashton described as "on the verge of resignation"
The Telegraph reports that EU Foreign Minister Cathy Ashton could stand down within months, according to colleagues, who say she is "on the verge of resignation" following criticism of her performance over recent months. It quotes an unnamed Commission official saying: "Every day is an uphill struggle. No one predicts she can stay five years, not even she."
 
The article also reports that following one recent row, she allegedly threatened to walk out of her job and had to be talked out of resigning on the spot by diplomats and officials. "She has been heard voicing her frustration and has expressed her desire to walk away," said an EU source. "She obviously finds some of the personal criticism to be almost unbearable." Close aides to Lady Ashton have dismissed the rumours and described her as a "stayer".
Telegraph
 
French Europe Minister: "Euroscepticism is on the rise in France"
A comment piece in Le Monde notes that euroscepticism and 'euro-worry' are gaining ground in France. The article argues that the Greek crisis has fed scepticism and quotes French Europe Minister Pierre Lellouche saying, "the crisis and the inability of [the EU] institutions to respond is accelerating the alienation of the people [from the EU]".
Le Monde
 
Michel Barnier: Considering idea for European credit rating agency
In an interview with French financial paper Les Echos, Michel Barnier, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, said that he is "reflecting...on the idea, the feasibility" of a European credit ratings agency, believing that currently "the agencies, given their importance, are concentrated in too few hands".
Les Echos NouvelObs Le Figaro
 
The European Court of Justice yesterday ruled that the wives of terrorist suspects are entitled to claim benefits in the UK, overturning previous restrictions introduced by the Treasury, because basic social aid was unlikely to be used to fund terrorist activity.
Mail Times Sun BBC Express
 
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has warned his European partners that he will not accept reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), saying, "I will not let French agriculture be destroyed. It is my mission".
Europe1
 
EUobserver reports that plans to recast the European Charter of Fundamental Rights as an 80-minute long epic poem have been scrapped, after being described as a "frivolous waste of time and money" by Justice Commissioner Vivian Reding. 
EUobserver
 
In-house lawyers are not protected by the same legal privilege rules as independent lawyers, a senior legal advisor at the European Court of Justice said yesterday. An article in European Voice argues that this has serious implications for firms accused of taking part in cartels and their in-house lawyers.
European Voice
 
FTDeutschland reports that the European Parliament wants the EU regulate the maximum speed of commercial vehicles, limiting it to 75 miles per hour by 2015.
FTD

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Open Europe is an independent think tank campaigning for radical reform of the EU. For information on our research, events and other activities, please visit our website: openeurope.org.uk or call us on 0207 197 2333.

Biracial woman discriminates against Jews

Angela commented on Interracial marriage is unnatural!

Discrimination from Jews always stuns me. You'd think a people with thousands of years of playing the victim to such discrimination would have changed the way you look at other people. I am in biracial woman, and I've been involved with a Jewish man for three years. It's a beautiful; relationship and I embrace his culture and history. This sort of hatred really hurts me. Your faith suffers from blind dogma. You really should wipe the crust from your eyes.

************

First of all, where's the discrimination? Facts discriminate? Why do you hate the plain truth of the Bible and history? Furthermore, I'm a Christian Zionist. Why your discrimination by singling out Jews? Is Mohammad Ali a Jew? How about Napoleon Bonaparte or any of the others quoted?  Sounds like you have some serious issues with Jews by your hateful comment about Jews playing the victim. You sound confused because you say you're in a relationship with a Jew.

Your relationship blinds you to what you don't want to see: interracial marriage is unnatural and according to the Bible - both the Christian and Jewish holy books - constitutes sin. As far as your particular case goes, God knows who you should be with but generally speaking each race must naturally go with its own or they're committing adultery and causing unncessary confusion.

(I'm emailing you this response because often when I approve a comment I see it still doesn't show up.)


The Sin of Interracial Marriage

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Chocolate Continent Awaits the Great Black Return!

Open Europe press summary: 29 April 2010

Europe
 
German Economy Minister:  Greek bailout to top €135bn;
Poll: 65% of Germans are against bailout
Fears that Greece's debt crisis may spread across the eurozone were raised yesterday, when credit rating agency Standard and Poor's downgraded Spain's rating, and the head of the OECD Angel Gurría said: "It's not a question of the danger of contagion; contagion has already happened. This is like Ebola. When you realise you have it you have to cut your leg off in order to survive."
 
Spiegel reports that German Economy Minister Rainer Brüderle said the rescue package could be as much as €135 billion over three years, but added "I can't rule out the possibility that the amount will be higher." Jürgen Trittin, parliamentary leader of the Green party, said that two thirds of the full Greek requirement over three years would have to be met by the eurozone member states, with a contribution from Germany of at least €16bn. However writing in the Telegraph, Edmund Conway argues that, assuming Greece needs around €100bn over the next few years, the IMF can only provide a maximum of €20bn.
 
On the costs to the German taxpayer, German Finance Minister Wolfang Schauble is quoted by FAZ saying "We hope it will cost nothing, because what we are doing is making credit available so that Greece can remain solvent". However, the Telegraph quotes Hans-Werner Sinn, head of the IFO economic institute, saying that Greece is likely to eventually "ask for Germany to waive the debt." Asked if taxpayers would ever get their money back, he said, "To tell you the truth, no."
 
PA reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel said last night she would only commit to the bailout if Greece undertook further austerity measures.  However, Andreas Loverdos, Greece's labour minister, has said that they "cannot accept" EU-IMF demands for further wages cuts.
 
Mr Trichet said that his "working assumption" was that the negotiations in Athens on the bailout would be finished "within two days, or during the weekend", and the FT reports that Germany and France are planning to hold parliamentary votes next week on the rescue package.
 
The Guardian reports that Merkel added that it had been a mistake to allow Greece to join the eurozone: "It turned out that the decision [in favour] may not have been scrutinised closely enough" she said.
 
There is widespread opposition to the bailout in Germany and a new poll in FAZ shows that only16% of Germans support the Greek aid package, while 65% are against it. When asked whether they had confidence in the euro, 32% said they did, down from 44% last year, while 45% said they had "slight confidence" in the euro.
 
Bloomberg reports that economists at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc have warned that Europe may need to provide as much as €600bn if they are to stamp out the eurozone's fiscal crisis, and quotes David Mackie, Chief European Economist at JPMorgan in London: "It may now be time for the euro area to do something much more dramatic in order to prevent the stress from creating another broad-based financial crisis which pushes the region back into recession."
 
A leader on the front page of FAZ argues: "the economic consequences of a failure of the monetary union - which appears likely now - can not be calculated, this is all the more true for the EU as a whole. Nobody should have illusions what consequences this will have for the overall mechanics of the European compromise machine."
IHT FT Telegraph City AM City AM 2 Irish Independent BBC EUobserver Today programme Bloomberg FT: Rachman blog Telegraph 2 Telegraph 3 FT: Barber European Voice: Editorial FT 2 EUobserver 2 Telegraph 4 Telegraph 5 Telegraph: Conway Guardian Irish Times Irish Times 2 Irish Times 3 Irish Times 4 IHT Express: McKinstry Mail Spectator: Coffee House blog Guardian 2 Guardian 3 Express Guardian 4 WSJ WSJ: Analysis Guardian 5 Independent Independent 2 Independent 3 Independent 4 FAZ Stern Deutsche Welle Die Welt FTD Spiegel Les Echos Nouvel Obs Le Figaro Les Echos Il Sole 24 Ore Focus Trouw Reuters  Kathimerini El Pais RTVE.es Spiegel Focus Telegraph FT 3 EurActiv OE blog Times: Leader FT: Leader Guardian: Leader Guardian: Elliott Independent: Prosser Die Welt  Spiegel
 
 
Commission to propose majority voting on member states' budgets
European Voice reports that on 12 May the Commission is to propose a big advance in EU co-ordination of euro zone national economic policies. Proposals will include the creation of a "permanent crisis resolution mechanism" to handle any future Greek-like scenario, offering financial support through bilateral loans from other eurozone countries, with lending conditions fixed in advance. They will also include a toughening up of the stability and growth pact - through the application of sanctions, such as withholding EU structural funds - and mutual reviews of draft budgets.
 
EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn will propose that eurozone finance ministers vote by qualified majority on whether draft national budgets are in line with EU economic guidelines and rules on fiscal discipline, though it is unclear what would happen if eurozone leaders voted against a national budget.  The eurozone would also adopt recommendations about what should be in countries' budgets.
Handelsblatt European Voice
 
Irish Foreign Minister forgets official EU line on debt restructuring for Greece
EU President Herman Van Rompuy insisted yesterday that debt restructuring for Greece was "out of the question" and Commission President José Manuel Barroso said it was "not an option". The Guardian reports that British banks have an estimated combined exposure of £25bn to Greece and £75bn to Spain.  The exposure of French and German banks to Greece is much greater at £52.5bn and £29.5bn respectively.
 
The Times reports that the Irish government has disowned comments from Foreign Minister Micheál Martin, supporting the idea of Greek debt restructuring. Mr Martin said that restructuring was "a legitimate initiative that they may in time have to take". Writing in the paper Bronwen Maddox argues: "The rescheduling of Greece's debt, which now seems all but inevitable, could shake banks in France, Switzerland and Germany. It could trigger a flight from Portuguese and even Spanish debt, hitting British banks hard."
 
Writing in the FT, Jean Pisani-Ferry and Andre Sapir from the Bruegel think-tank argue that, "Given the likelihood of debt restructuring down the road, it should waste no time in designing a European debt resolution mechanism to help members with unsustainable debt to resolve it with their creditors in an orderly way."
FT: Pisani-Ferry and Andre Sapir Times FT Times: Maddox Guardian WSJ 2 Mail
 
Based on an investigation by Open Europe, the Express challenged Nick Clegg to explain whether he made a personal profit on selling the Brussels house he owned from 2001 to 2005, while receiving taxpayer-funded accommodation allowances whilst he was an MEP.
Express
 
Cameron: "I won't take us into the euro"
The Express reports that David Cameron yesterday accused Labour and the Liberal Democrats of plotting to scrap the pound and taking the UK into the euro.  He is quoted saying, "The Conservatives have a very clear policy on this. If I am, and as long as I am, your Prime Minister I won't take us into the euro."  He also argued that "If we were in the euro, our taxes would be taken to bail out Greece".
 
Meanwhile, in an interview with the FT Gordon Brown, when asked whether the Greek crisis has hardened his feelings towards the euro, said: "We will not be joining the euro in the immediate future, let's put it like that."
Express
 
The Telegraph reports that Nick Clegg believes that "the British remain hostile towards the European Union because of their nostalgia for days of empire", and that joining the EU "was a kind of admission of weakness" for the UK. The article predicts that "his comments are likely to anger voters who dislike the EU because of its interference in British laws, red tape and lack of accountability".
Telegraph
 
Martine Aubry: the future of Europe is questionable
Reuters reports that Martine Aubry, the leader of the French Socialist party, said yesterday that the crisis in Greece has drawn into question the future of Europe and that Europe needs to strengthen itself if it is to not disappear.  She is quoted saying, "We are all extremely concerned because beyond Greece, it is the future of Europe which is at stake".  She also stressed the need to accelerate global financial regulation, saying "Europe must be behind Obama to regulate the financial system, otherwise we will have another Greece tomorrow and Europe will go off radar." 
Reuters NouvelObs
 
UK's contribution to EU set to rise in 2011 as Commission proposes 6 percent budget increase
The Mail reports that the European Commission's draft for the 2011 EU budget will see a six percent increase, pushing the budget up by £7billion to £114billion. The article notes that the UK is the second highest net contributor to the budget this year, paying in £7.6billion. This will increase by an extra £450million if the budget increase is approved by member states and the European Parliament.
Mail
 
Spanish EU Presidency looks to bring forward AIFM Directive negotiations
European Voice reports that Spain, which holds the EU's rotating Presidency, is looking to speed up talks on the EU's proposed Directive to regulate hedge funds and private equity managers (AIFM Directive). Spain wants to put discussion of the proposal to a meeting of finance ministers on 18 May, bringing forward the previously planned date of 8 June. The article notes that diplomats have suggested that the accelerated timetable reflects Spanish concerns about its Presidency's record.
European Voice Telegraph: Hannan blog Open Europe research Open Europe blog
 
Ex-Commissioners take up posts at Ryanair and RBS
The Irish Independent notes that ex-Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy accepted a job at airline Ryanair over a month before he formally stepped down from his EU post. The EU's Code of Conduct obliges former Commissioners undertaking a new job within a year of leaving office to "behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance...of certain appointments or benefits".  Last month, Air France launched a major legal battle against Ryanair, accusing it of receiving €660m a year in subsidies, in violation of EU state aid rules.
 
Meanwhile, EUobserver notes that former Industry Commissioner Günter Verhuegen has taken a job with the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Irish Independent European Voice EUobserver
 

DPA reports that the European Commission hopes to have electrical vehicle safety standards outlined by the end of 2010.
FT EUobserver DPA  NouvelObs

 

An article in Deutsche Welle comments that "EU agricultural subsidies are falling into the wrong hands". It notes how the largest share goes to big companies and that the top three beneficiaries in Germany are industrial giants Nordmilch, Südzucker and Pfeifer und Langen.
AGD DW

 
Nieuwsblad Transport reports that a "lobby war" has emerged against the EU's CO2 limit for company vans, with producers calling for a delay in implementation.
Nieuwsblad Transport 
 
The WSJ notes that a legal adviser for the European Court of Justice is expected to hand down a crucial opinion today, affecting EU competition cases, on whether privacy rules on correspondence between lawyers and clients applies to in-house as well as external lawyers.
WSJ
 
EurActiv report that according to "insiders", the EU's 'Reflection Group' (known as the 'wise men group') have chosen to work with "privacy, not secrecy". They are due to present their report which will identify the key issues which the European Union is likely to face in the future and how these might be addressed on 9 May.
EurActiv
 
NRC Handelsblad reports that EU Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton has sent a letter in German to the German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on the use of German in the EU diplomatic service, pointing out that diplomats abroad will not be obliged to be able to speak German.   
NRC Handelsblad

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Open Europe is an independent think tank campaigning for radical reform of the EU. For information on our research, events and other activities, please visit our website: openeurope.org.uk or call us on 0207 197 2333.