During the meeting of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, MEPs participate in the exchange of views with Olaf SCHOLZ, German Federal Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister for Finance on the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) package proposals. Extracts from the exchange of views.

Brussels

exchange of views

meeting

BERÈS, Pervenche (S&D, FR)

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Economic and monetary union (T2)

URTASUN, Ernest (Greens/EFA, ES)

economic and monetary union package (T)

SCHOLZ, Olaf (DE)

Exchange of views with Olaf SCHOLZ, German Federal Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister for Finance on EMU package proposals, at the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs: extracts

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/18866231/I158546Chapters%5BSD-EN%5D.srt

Arrival of Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals

SOUNDBITE (German), Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals, We need to further progress that can be built upon the basis of the banking package. We particularly need to think how we can further develop the European StabilityMechanism, theESM. A couple of questions around that, if we are going to make changes to theESM, then we should do it in one step, messing around with the treaties several times will make no sense.

SOUNDBITE (German), Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals, The Commission has the proposal on how we should deal with Non-Performing Loans (NPLs), those proposals should be adopted rapidly. We need to discuss what are the objectives, the objectives in terms of where the NPLs level should be leading, we are talking about a growth of 5 percent.

SOUNDBITE (German), Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals, One item that we will put to debate is whether we could have some insurance on unemployment benefit, that will have a major stabilising function on difficult times. It has been tested, it is basically the system that the USA has installed for its individual states. They all have their own unemployment insurance, the precondition is that the State has to have an unemployment insurance system, but when there is a macroeconomic shock situation, maybe a short crisis with very high unemployment in different States, the member states show solidarity.

SOUNDBITE (French), Pervenche BER&#200;S (S&amp;D, FR), On fiscal capacity, you have mentioned the Declaration where the idea of an unemployment insurance scheme was mention, are you going to flesh that out?

SOUNDBITE (German), Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals , This insurance system for unemployment is not a separate European unemployment system. I think that would be a fata morgana. But you have to look at the differences between social security systems and create something that is a sort of back up, with maybe there is an increased contribution so you can get through a two year period.

SOUNDBITE (German), Ernest URTASUN (Greens/ALE, ES), On a very concrete file, the country by country reporting, you know that this parliament has a broad support for that file, in the last working group was Germany who blocked because apparently it was not ready to conclude the negotiations. I know that the German social democrats have the CBCR in their electoral platform and I would like to know what is the official position of you as a finance minister.

SOUNDBITE (German), Olaf SCHOLZ, Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of Germany on EMU package proposals, Country by country reporting that functions when everyone is on board. It applies to countries but also applies to companies. A situation with no reports, means no progress either. We do have to find a solution which functions in reality. If we are going to destroy the basis in which we receive the information that we need, then we have not won anything. We have to be very cautious in our approach, with an efficient system, accepted by companies and countries.