EUROPEA8 COU8CIL
THE PRESIDE8T
Strasbourg, 19 January 2011
PCE 009/11
Speech by
Herman VA8 ROMPUY
President of the European Council
at the European Parliament
First of all I wish you a happy new year. As simple as that. I wish it for you personally. I wish it for
our Union, in these difficult times.
As the last European Council is already a month behind us, let me remind you that I already give
each time a full report to your Conference of Presidents on the results of the European Council just
a few hours after every meeting.
At the December European Council, we focussed on the first day on economic issues and the
second on foreign policy.
On economic policy, we reached some important conclusions.
First, we decided on the proposal for a limited treaty amendment required to establish a permanent
mechanism to safeguard the financial stability of the Eurozone as a whole. Following our agreement
in principle in our October meeting that such a treaty change is needed, I had consulted the
members of the European Council about its possible wording and content. I secured agreement on a
text consisting of two sentences, to be added to Article 136 of the Treaty:
"The Member States whose currency is the euro may establish a stability mechanism to be
activated if indispensable to safeguard the stability of the euro area as a whole. The granting of
any required financial assistance under the mechanism will be made subject to strict
conditionality."
It is an essential piece in our efforts to make Europe more crisis-proof. It is important, not just for
legal certainty, but also for market credibility.
P R E S S
FOR FURTHER DETAILS:
Dirk De Backer - Spokesperson of the President +32 (0)2 281 9768 - +32 (0)497 59 99 19
Jesús Carmona - Deputy Spokesperson of the President +32 (0)2 281 9548 / 6319 - +32 (0)475 65 32 15
e-mail: press.president@consilium.europa.eu
internet: http://www.consilium.europa.eu/
As this amendment will not increase the competences of the Union, all members of the European
Council agreed that it was appropriate to use a simplified revision procedure. This now requires an
opinion from your Parliament, as well as from the European Commission and the Central Bank. We
hope to secure your approval. I need hardly remind you of the importance of proceeding as rapidly
and as smoothly as possible in this matter in a period where market volatility remains a concern.
I know that you, and your responsible committees, have been following this matter closely, not least
during the work of the Task Force on economic governance which I chaired and which gave rise to
meetings between myself and the seven chairs of the parliamentary committees most involved. And
I would like to thank President Buzek for his contribution on this at the European Council and for
informing us of Parliament's willingness to proceed quickly in considering this matter.
With the benefit of your opinion, the European Council will be able to turn this draft decision into a
full decision at its March meeting. Then the treaty amendment will have to be approved in each
Member State. The aim is for the amendment to enter into force on 1 January 2013 at the latest, so
that the permanent mechanism itself can be in place in June 2013.
The European Council also examined what could be the key features of the future mechanism.
Already in October, we had asked the Commission to undertake the preparatory work. This resulted
in a statement by the Eurogroup Finance Ministers on 28 November, which was fully endorsed at
the European Council meeting.
It foresees that the future European Stability Mechanism will be designed on the basis of the current
mechanism, so IMF involvement is provided for. The EU will continue to adhere strictly to standard
IMF and international practices. Concerning the role of the private sector, decisions will be taken on
a case by case basis, so private sector involvement will not be a prior requirement for support under
the future Stability Mechanism.
Finally, the European Council also had a very good and in-depth exchange of views on recent
economic developments and on how to deal with the challenges for all European economies, short
term and long term. The President of the Central Bank was also present. A statement by the Heads
of State or Government of the Eurozone and the EU institutions present was welcomed by the
European Council.
This discussion confirmed the sense of determination and unity amongst the Member States and the
institutions. Everybody around the table shared the basic analysis. I insist: all 27 agree, even if the
analysis focuses particularly on now 17 euro countries. We thus have a joint will to make our
economies more resistant to crises and to enhance structural economic growth in Europe.
Let me mention the elements of this joint approach, which reflects the statement adopted.
Three points concern work to be done by the national governments;
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First, fiscal responsibility.
Second, stimulating growth.
Third: the two countries with support programmes are forcefully implementing the
necessary measures and we all welcome the efforts of those two governments, Greece and
Ireland, and their populations.
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Two other points concern work to be done by the Member States and the institutions of the
European Union together:
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First, the European Council asks the other institutions, not least your Parliament, to make
sure that the agreements reached in October, on the basis of the Task Force which I chaired,
regarding the Stability Pact and macro-economic surveillance be in place by the summer. It
is our common duty.
Second, we agree to conduct new stress tests in the banking sector to ensure full
transparency in the broader context of the EU annual exercise.
Our determination is clear. The Heads of State or Government of the Eurozone and the EU
institutions "stand ready to do whatever is required to ensure the stability of the Eurozone as a
whole". Work is going on to develop these elements of this overall approach.
On the second day of our meeting, we focused on our relations with strategic partners. Cathy
Ashton presented progress reports on how to deal with strategic partners and I briefed colleagues
about the positive outcome of three recent summit meetings, namely:
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the summit with President Obama, where we opened new avenues for transatlantic
cooperation on growth, jobs and security, such as green growth and cyber security.
the summit with President Medvedev in which we reached the bilateral agreement on
Russia's WTO accession: a major achievement.
the summit with Indian Prime Minister Singh of India, which showed good progress for an
ambitious and balanced free trade agreement (hopefully with a result in the first semester of
this year) and the Summit also produced a joint declaration on international terrorism.
These meetings all showed that, for our partners, the European Union is not only an economic union
and a trade bloc, but also a geopolitical partner.
The European Council also decided to give Montenegro the status of candidate country. It
underlines the conviction within the European Council that the countries of the Western Balkans
have a European vocation.
Finally, we agreed also on the position on Cote d'Ivoire, in line with what the ministers of Foreign
Affairs decided a few days previously, sending a clear signal on the need to respect the results of
democratic elections.
As you know the European Council on 4th February will deal principally with our growth agenda.
Innovation and energy - especially energy security - are key in this regard.
In March we will have our first exercise of what is called the European Semester. It must not be a
bureaucratic process but a real occasion to have an in-depth discussion on the state of play of our
economy and the actions to be taken.
Dear colleagues, we know of course that we have to strengthen and deepen economic coordination
and convergence inside the Eurozone. We will work as much as possible in a comprehensive
framework: I am convinced we will find the necessary consensus.
Thank you for your attention.
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