Brussels comes up with plan “B” for rescuing Europe

A day before the crucial summit of EU leaders on 8-9 December which is expected to give a specific solution to the debt crisis, controversies between Brussels and the leading EU economies - Germany and France - deepened.

World media made public today a leaked draft report by European Council President, Herman Van Rompuy, and European Commission President, Jose Manuel Barroso, proposing a plan aimed at a “new fiscal compact” instead of a new EU treaty. This is a practically a direct hit at the ideas of Berlin and Paris which are pushing for a new EU treaty to be enforced by March 2012 and to impose automatic sanctions on countries with deficits above 3%.

According to Mr Van Rompuy tougher fiscal rules may be adopted simply by amending the Protocol No 12 of the Lisbon Treaty - a procedure that only needs a consensus of the 27 EU member-states
after consultations with the European Parliament and the European Central Bank ( ECB). Thus, lengthy ratification by parliaments or national referendums would be avoided, argues Mr Van Rompuy.

In his 5-page draft report Mr Van Rompuy insists on redistribution of powers between the administrative structures in the EU and depriving of voting rights the countries benefiting from international stabilisation programmess unless they conduct coordinated reforms. At the same time, the European Council President appeals for giving greater powers to European institutions to interfere in the internal economic affairs of the EU member-states at a time of crisis, such as the drafting of national budgets, the implementation of social programmes and the tax policy. According to him, the time has come to coordinate the pension systems of the EU member-states, their labour markets and tax policies.

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