New Challenge Could Be Launched at Highest Court

GERMANY - A new panel of lawmakers set up by the German parliament to reach quick decisions on the release of rescue funds from the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) may be in breach of the German constitution, a study by the parliament's research unit has shown. The panel is intended to ensure that parliament has a say in the release of funds from the EFSF, following a Constitutional Court ruling last month which said the parliament must be involved in measures to bail out other euro-zone member states. The nine-member body, to be selected from the parliament's budget committee, is to approve bailout decisions with the necessary speed and confidentiality to avoid fanning financial market turmoil. New Challenge Could Be Launched at Highest Court - But the study, undertaken by legal experts and commissioned by a member of parliament from the opposition center-left Social Democrats, Swen Schulz, has cast doubt on whether the panel will preserve an adequate degree of parliamentary sovereignty on budget decisions amounting to billions of euros. "Delegating this authority to a special body shifts responsibility onto a small number of people and obstructs the involvement of all members of parliament in the parliamentary process," the study says. Schulz is now considering taking the matter to the Constitutional Court, which is Germany's highest judicial authority. "A nine-member panel can't replace the Bundestag in such an important question," he says. Last month, the court rejected lawsuits filed by eurosceptics aimed at blocking the participation of Europe's biggest economy in bailout packages for Greece and other euro-zone countries. But it said the government must seek the approval of parliament's budget committee before granting aid.

Dublin and IMF

DUBLIN—After a week of declining offers of a bailout, Irish Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said Sunday he will recommend his government formally apply for an aid package from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund to shore up its public finances. Mr. Lenihan said on state broadcaster RTE Radio he will make the recommendation at a cabinet meeting later in the day. The finance minister said Ireland's banks have become "too big a problem for the country."
The government must now ensure that it is able to fund itself, that the economy remains stable and that Ireland can still borrow money in the financial markets, he added.
"So for all these reasons I will be recommending to the government that we should apply to a program and open formal negotiations," he said.
The step paves the way for the 16-country euro zone's second government bailout this year, following the emergency €110 billion ($150 billion) bailout plan for Greece in May.
Ireland will have to knuckle down on public spending to meet EU guidelines, which many worry will trigger protests like the ones seen in Greece. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions already has planned a protest Nov. 27 against more government cuts.
Irish bond investors could become better protected against default risk. But market watchers worry whether the latest blow to the prestige of the euro will intensify scrutiny on the finances of other fiscally weak governments, such as in Portugal or Spain.traian basescu,emil boc.vadim.radu tudor,imobiliare,restaurante,auto.ro,ziare.ro