Friday, October 21, 2011

Merkel's spokesman Steffan Seibert told journalists that further changes to Europe's bailout fund would require the agreement of the Bundestag, the German parliament. The eurozone's efforts to solve its escalating debt crisis plunged into disarray Thursday, when Germany and France called a second emergency summit after it became clear that they would not be able to bridge their difference in time for a first crisis meeting Sunday. Merkel's address to parliament scheduled for Friday was cancelled, and Seibert said it would take place next week. Sunday's summit was supposed to deliver a comprehensive plan to finally get a grip on the currency union's debt troubles by detailing new financing for debt-ridden Greece, a plan to make Europe's banks fit to sustain worsening market turbulence and a scheme to make the eurozone bailout fund more powerful. The announcement came from the offices of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel after it became clear that the currecy union's two biggest countries could not agree on the main points of the plan. Both governments said that all elements of the eurozone's crisis strategy would be discussed on Sunday "so it can be definitively adopted by the Heads of State and Government at a second meeting Wednesday at the latest." It also said that the two leaders would meet Saturday afternoon ahead of the summit in Brussels in the hope of making progress.

The European Union's executive may ask for powers to censor credit ratings for countries in crisis, its financial reform chief said on Thursday, describing a ban as one way of stopping fallout from "ill-thought-out" ratings. The proposal, which officials cautioned may be impossible to police, would be the most stringent curb yet on rating agencies and highlights frustration in France, which was this week warned by Moody's that its top rating was under threat, and Germany. "These rating agencies should probably be considered one of the causes of this crisis," said Michel Barnier, the former French foreign minister who is now the EU commissioner in charge of regulating finance.

1 comment:

motzu said...

Greek lawmakers have passed a deeply resented austerity bill that has led to violent protests on the streets of Athens, despite some dissent from one Socialist lawmaker.

The new measures include pay and staff cuts in the civil service as well as pension cuts and tax hikes for all Greeks. The bill passed by majority vote in the 300-member parliament.

Former Labor Minister Louka Katseli voted against one article that scales back collective labor bargaining rights. She voted in favor of the overall bill, but Prime Minister George Papandreou expelled her from the party's parliamentary group. The move whittles down his parliamentary majority to 153.

The vote came after violent demonstrations that left one person dead and 74 injured.



Read more: Greek Lawmakers Pass Austerity Bill Despite Riots
Important: Can you afford to Retire? Shocking Poll Results