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BackRight at the top of agenda was the aid package for Portugal. Portugal was granted an amount of 78 billion Euros. The decision was made to divide the aid for Portugal equally between the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism (EFSM), the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In return, Portugal has to implement an economic and financial rehabilitation programme by mid-2014. It contains structural reforms to promote growth, to create jobs and to improve competitiveness. A budget consolidation strategy is also part of the programme. Portugal is required to reduce her deficit to under 3 % of GDP by 2013. In addition, she should strengthen her banking sector to guarantee its stability and ability to grant loans. The programme should contribute to retaining the stability of the Eurozone's financial system.
The review of the implementation of the rehabilitation programme in Ireland was also on the agenda, not, however, new aid for Greece. To begin with, one had to urge Greece to carry out reforms and to modernise her state structure to ensure new growth. Before asking for new money, Greece should cooperate and do her homework, said the Austrian Finance Minister Maria Fekter. Roughly at the same time, at its congress in Athens and also on the initiative of the Austrian Trade Union Federation ÖGB, the European Trade Union Confederation adopted a Resolution, which is primarily aimed at the Finance Ministers of the Eurozone, but also at European policy in general. "Greece needs a perspective for growth and development and no austerity policy ", says the Resolution. The Resolution also demands among others to foster a public investment strategy allowing Europe to grow out of its debts and deficits and the detachment of financial aid from growth hampering and anti-social austerity measures.
Further topics at the Council meeting were economic governance, short selling and Credit Default Swaps (CDS), the taxation of interest income and financial transactions. Regarding the regulation of short selling and CDS, Germany entered into the negotiations with a demand for a general ban on naked short selling - however, nothing came of it. Instead, transparency rules were defined, which are to be regulated together with the European Parliament; a temporary ban may only be imposed in emergency cases - in agreement with the European Security and Markets Authority (ESMA).
The developments in respect of taxing financial transactions also remained lukewarm. Only an interim report of the Hungarian presidency was presented, in which the consultations of the high-calibre group “Tax issues” were considered. The report reflected in particular the misgivings of the opponents of such taxation, such as fears concerning an excessive burden on the industry, but also of putting international competitiveness at risk. Once again, the report praises the benefits of a Financial Activities Tax and claims that it - in contrast to the option of a Financial Transaction Tax - would be far more advantageous and easier to implement. And the report did not fail to mention the frequently evoked danger of a shift of financial transactions.
All in all, the report does not provide any essential insights and one has to ask oneself why such a High Level Working Group had been set up to learn something, which can be read in the mainstream media day in day out, as soon as the keyword financial transaction taxation is mentioned.
However, perhaps the call of this group and of the Council in the direction of the Commission will be taken seriously by the latter and the long anticipated “Impact Assessment” is indeed published before the summer and not only at a time, when there is no longer anybody in Brussels to study it seriously and in good time.
The review of the implementation of the rehabilitation programme in Ireland was also on the agenda, not, however, new aid for Greece. To begin with, one had to urge Greece to carry out reforms and to modernise her state structure to ensure new growth. Before asking for new money, Greece should cooperate and do her homework, said the Austrian Finance Minister Maria Fekter. Roughly at the same time, at its congress in Athens and also on the initiative of the Austrian Trade Union Federation ÖGB, the European Trade Union Confederation adopted a Resolution, which is primarily aimed at the Finance Ministers of the Eurozone, but also at European policy in general. "Greece needs a perspective for growth and development and no austerity policy ", says the Resolution. The Resolution also demands among others to foster a public investment strategy allowing Europe to grow out of its debts and deficits and the detachment of financial aid from growth hampering and anti-social austerity measures.
Further topics at the Council meeting were economic governance, short selling and Credit Default Swaps (CDS), the taxation of interest income and financial transactions. Regarding the regulation of short selling and CDS, Germany entered into the negotiations with a demand for a general ban on naked short selling - however, nothing came of it. Instead, transparency rules were defined, which are to be regulated together with the European Parliament; a temporary ban may only be imposed in emergency cases - in agreement with the European Security and Markets Authority (ESMA).
The developments in respect of taxing financial transactions also remained lukewarm. Only an interim report of the Hungarian presidency was presented, in which the consultations of the high-calibre group “Tax issues” were considered. The report reflected in particular the misgivings of the opponents of such taxation, such as fears concerning an excessive burden on the industry, but also of putting international competitiveness at risk. Once again, the report praises the benefits of a Financial Activities Tax and claims that it - in contrast to the option of a Financial Transaction Tax - would be far more advantageous and easier to implement. And the report did not fail to mention the frequently evoked danger of a shift of financial transactions.
All in all, the report does not provide any essential insights and one has to ask oneself why such a High Level Working Group had been set up to learn something, which can be read in the mainstream media day in day out, as soon as the keyword financial transaction taxation is mentioned.
However, perhaps the call of this group and of the Council in the direction of the Commission will be taken seriously by the latter and the long anticipated “Impact Assessment” is indeed published before the summer and not only at a time, when there is no longer anybody in Brussels to study it seriously and in good time.