Questions to the ECB, Despite Socialist Obstruction
6 April 2009
The chairman, French socialist Pervenche Beres, chose deliberately not to give me the floor, despite my catching her attention more than once, and that of one of her staff at least once.
This denial of free speech to an elected member of the European Parliament follows her equally deliberate refusal to pass my letters to Mr Trichet, which protocol demands, ever since 2004.
As a result, it was necessary to send directly to Mr Trichet the following letter:
Dear Mr Trichet
As promised after yesterday's meeting of the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee in Brussels, I am writing to put the four questions Mrs Beres was unwilling to allow me to put from the floor. First, however, I must apologise for my very late arrival which was caused by flight problems at London Heathrow Airport. No discourtesy was intended.
My questions are these:
1. Would you agree with many economists of the Austrian school who see great danger in globalisation? Such a trend has already synchronised the economic cycle in many countries. In turn this has reduced the chances of economies in a buoyant part of the economic cycle pulling those in trouble out of recession. Is not the very existence of the euro now part of this problem?
2. Is not the injection of vast amounts of "new" money highly inflationary? It is, after all, based on printing presses rather than wealth-creation, and is going into economies which are unchanged or decreasing in size. Judging by the markets, they are now beginning to think inflation is the greater longer-term risk. Economist historians also think so. If you disagree, what are your reasons?
3. Do you agree with the call to abolish tax havens? Or do you recognise that they are vital to many small economies around the world and - much more importantly - they force fiscal and taxation discipline on governments. Without tax havens there would be nothing to stop profligate governments, like that in the UK at present, from taxing the wealth-creating business sector to a standstill and bloating the unproductive public sector. Tax havens force governments to compete as they try to attract and retain enterprises in their jurisdictions.
4. Do you agree with the idea of restoring the distinction between different types of banks? I refer to traditional clearing banks which receive deposits and make loans to support businesses and families, and investment banks which involve themselves in the free enterprise risk-taking sector, and which could be allowed to fail if and when they mismanage their affairs. Or are you a supporter of the idea of simply introducing new regulations which apply to all financial institutions? If so, do you not accept that such a move may well stifle them all and make our current global financial problems infinitely worse?
I appreciate your time is precious, but these are hugely important questions to thousands of my constituents. They would appreciate an answer as soon as you have a moment. To respond to, or comment on this Email, please email ashley.mote@btconnect.com
Monday, 6 April 2009
I arrived late at the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee meeting in Brussels last week, when the head of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, attended to discuss the global economic crisis.
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