Last June and July Europe’s leaders adopted some quite clear and fundamental decisions.
On the eve of the latest Summit in Brussels it is worth recapping some of the more explicit commitments.
| Euro Commitments | Ireland’s Response |
| The following EFSF lending rates and maturities ‘will be applied to Ireland’:
- Lengthen loans (from 7.5 years at present) to up to 30 years - Grace period of ten years - Reduce lending rates to 3.5% (equivalent to those of the Balance of Payments facility) |
No mention of such generous terms in Budget 2012 arithmetic. Whatever happened to this promise (made at the 21 July 2011 meeting of the European Council)? |
| ‘We reaffirm our commitment to the euro and to do whatever is needed to ensure the financial stability of the euro as a whole and its Member States’. | …………but |
| Member States (i.e. Ireland) should strive to make their future commitments as specific and measurable as possible. Giving details on how and when commitments will be met, in order to render measurable over time and facilitate benchmarking with other Member States as well as Europe’s strategic partners. | Eh. Sure we only benchmark (some) public sector salaries and when we do it’s only against prevailing (lower) private sector salaries. None of your international benchmarking stuff please. |
| The euro area Heads of State or Government call (as they did in June 2011) on Finance Ministers to complete work on outstanding elements to allow the necessary decisions to’ be taken by early July’. | But which July? 2012? 2013? |
| We note Ireland’s willingness to participate constructively in the discussions on the Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base draft Directive ‘and in the structured discussions on tax policy issues in the framework of the Euro+ Pact framework’. | Watch carefully for the equivalent paragraph in the December 2012 Council conclusions. |
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