On the "escrow" account: The European citizens should know, however, that loans to Greece are paid into an "escrow" account and are used exclusively to repay past loans and to recapitalise near-bankrupt private banks. The money cannot be used to par salaries and pensions, or to buy basic medicines for hospitals and milk for schools. The precondition for these loans is more austerity, paralysing the Greek economy and increasing the possibility of default. If there is a risk to the European taxpayer losing their money, it is created by austerity.`The Greek message to Angela Merkel, Alexis Tsipras, The Guardian 8/10/12....What is needed is a full implementation of the promise to remove government liability for private financial sector banking debts, not only in Greece but in every EU nation state. This was mooted some time ago only to be followed by political elite class vacillation over whether or not pre-2012 debts could be included. The only way forward for the countries shouldering the burden of insolvent banks is to place responsibility for those debts back onto the banks and make the policy retrospective....Well,....Draghi enters lion's den to sell bond-buying plan (reuters)
Well actually it's just the Bundestag Budget and European Committees, but they're probably happy to be described as "lions". Given the amount of extra paperwork dumped on them by the Constitutional Court regarding EZ crisis-handling, they could do with being pepped up I expect.
It's a good report by Reuters, in any case.
I expect the big questions to be about Spain," said Guntram Wolff, deputy director of the Brussels-based Bruegel think-tank and a former Bundesbank economist.
"There is a lot of opposition to a programme for Spain. They are against it because they fear it would open the floodgates at the ECB. The concerns run very deep, also in the SPD."
Yes, the SPD are fiscal conservatives too.
But amid the concerns, there was general agreement that Draghi had done the right thing in offering to explain his policies at a time when many citizens in Europe feel momentous decisions are being taken without their input.
"One of the big problems of Europe is that European institutions only talk to voters through national governments," said Wolff. "So it's important to have a direct link to the people, and this is a step in that direction."
Yes. Draghi was really quite wise to make the offer to appear before the Bundestag committees.
5 comments:
Under the Italian legal system, the country's former prime minister will be entitled to two appeals before a definitive sentence. Berlusconi's sentence will also be reduced to one year under a 2006 measure that stripped three years off sentences for crimes committed before that date.
Berlusconi was also banned from public office for five years and ordered to pay €10m (£8.3m) to the Italian tax office, measures that would take effect if his conviction is upheld by the two appeals.
Frank Agrama, the US-based manager who is accused of selling TV rights to Mediaset at inflated prices, was sentenced to three years, while chairman Fedele Confalonieri, who was also on trial, was acquitted. Two other employees of Berlusconi's firms were also found guilty.
Prosecutors alleged some of the funds paid were then siphoned back to companies controlled by Berlusconi to avoid taxes. In his ruling, judge Edoardo D'Avossa, wrote that Berlusconi possessed a "natural capacity to commit crime, as shown by his pursuit of the criminal plan."
"This is a political, intolerable sentence," said Berlusconi, who has long accused Italian magistrates of waging war against him through the courts. "We cannot go on like this."
The six-year trial suffered frequent delays as Berlusconi sought to introduce measures while prime minister that would grant him immunity from prosecution.
Berlusconi's indictment in a parallel case known as Mediatrade – which deals with similar offences committed at a different time – was previously dropped.
The sentence comes days after Berlusconi, 76, formally announced he would not seek re-election as prime minister in elections due next year. Berlusconi resigned from office in November 2011 – his third spell as prime minister — weakened by scandals and the economic crisis engulfing Italy.
Berlusconi has beaten three previous convictions for financial crimes, twice on appeal and once thanks to the statute of limitations. In total Berlusconi has faced 33 trials. Last year, his trial for allegedly bribing British lawyer David Mills was timed out by the statute of limitations before it reached a verdict.
Berlusconi's lawyer Niccolò Ghedini described the sentence as "absolutely incredibile".
Berlusconi is also on trial in Milan accused of paying an underage prostitute. The case revolves around Karima El-Mahroug, also known as Ruby Heartstealer, who attended parties at Berlusconi's Milan mansion in 2010 aged 17.
The trial is expected to end by the end of this year. Mahroug said in a TV interview this week that she did not have sex with Berlusconi. Asked if Berlusconi had asked to have sex with her, she replied: "In an explicit manner, no."
She confirmed that female guests at Berlusconi's parties danced in a risqué fashion. Three associates of Berlusconi are on trial separately for procuring prostitutes for the former prime minister.
Dutch finance minister Jan Kees de Jager said that “Greece must bear the costs of any delay”, as think tank Open Europe warned that a two-year extension would cost at least €28.5bn (£23bn) to ensure the struggling eurozone nation can refinance its debts and pay its bills. His comments came as Ireland appeared to clash with its eurozone partners despite being hailed as a bail-out “success story”.
Eurozone officials were yesterday reported to be discussing how much Greece’s request to extend its debt and deficit targets until 2016 would cost and how it would be financed.
Open Europe said a small portion could be met by a cut in the interest rate on the €126bn of emergency loans from its European partners. However, the bulk would have to be financed by Greece. “Further austerity will be politically and economically difficult but there may be little alternative,” it said.
The release of a key €31.5bn tranche of Greece’s aid package is tied up with the negotiations on the bail-out timetable. Eurozone finance ministers are scheduled to discuss its release next Wednesday. Athens has warned it will run out of money next month unless it gets the funds.
German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle
said Ireland was “an excellent example that you can make it with discipline,
with hard work and that you can work your way out of this debt crisis”.
"
Translation from EuroCrankSpeak :
"Arbeit macht frei"
Or probably not in this and many other former independent countries now still adopting the Euro as currency.
Let me see...
Greece is angling for another 31.5 bn euros in November.
It still hasn't enacted the reforms it promised in the early summer and it wants two more years to implement them.
The Troika is saying it will cost Greece another 28.5 bn euros to delay reforms, so we can say that for every billion euros it hopes to receive in November, it must pay back almost another billion in interest.
And this is supposed to cut Greek debt and restore it to the capital markets how?
They have already written off 1oo billion euros, and still the debt gets higher.
The plughole in the Aegean down which the funny moneyis poured seems to have got even bigger.
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