EU commission to outline plans for political union

EU Observer ^ | 2012.05.22 @ 17:16 | Honor Mahony

[Olog-hai]

The European Commission has said it will soon bring forward plans for an economic and political union it says is necessary for the creation of debt-mutualizing eurobonds—one of the most controversial proposed solutions to the current eurozone crisis.

"We need to reflect what kind of European union would be required to deepen economic and political integration, for instance so that joint issuance of debt would make sense for all member states sharing the single currency," economics commissioner Olli Rehn told MEPs on Tuesday (22 May).

He said the commission would "soon" come up with a "medium to long term roadmap" outlining the necessary deeper fiscal and economic integration that would minimize moral hazard—member states running up debt because they know it will be paid by others—and ensure "fiscal sustainability."

"In other words," the commissioner added, "the features of an economic and political union required to make mutualization rational for all."

With his statement, Rehn has put the eurobonds issue firmly back on the table just ahead of a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Wednesday (23 May) to discuss growth strategies for Europe. …

The summit has been billed by EU president Herman Van Rompuy—who has in the past also said that mutualization of euro debt must be discussed—as a no-decisions but no-taboos get-together.

Meanwhile, the institutional changes implied by Rehn's statement to MEPs have a potentially more receptive audience in Germany and beyond. …

[rbg81]

How do you know the Germans didn’t engineer this? They tried to unite Europe by force - 2X. Now they are trying to do it through economics.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Olog-hai.

[farlander]

Cause they want to rule not work to support lazy socialist layabouts.

[rbg81]

Cause they want to rule not work to support lazy socialist layabouts.

---

Yes, but how long will that be true once the Germans are calling the shots? Rouse!