Germany wants EU-wide transaction tax, but open to bourse tax

berlin

Germany would consider a bourse tax as a compromise if this could bring Britain in line with its EU partners as they seek ways to tax the financial sector but its preferred option remains a financial transaction tax imposed on all 27 members, the government’s spokesman said on Friday.

01/6/2012 — Filed under: Politics
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European Commission Sticks to Plan for Farm Policy After France Objects

European Commission

The European Commission will resist calls by France, the European Union’s largest agricultural producer, to scale back environmental clauses within the 27- nation bloc’s new farm policy, a spokesman said.

01/4/2012 — Filed under: Politics
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European Union turns screws on Greece, Spain, as recession looms

EU

European finance ministers on Tuesday ordered Greece and Spain to swiftly get debts under control as a recession threatened to undermine efforts to end a two-year crisis.

01/1/2012 — Filed under: Finance,Politics
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Bulgarian President Plevneliev to meet top EU officials in Brussels

President Plevneliev

Bulgarian President Rossen Plevneliev is going to Brussels on January 25 2012 for talks with European Unions leaders as well as Nato Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Plevneliev’s office said.

12/30/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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Pretty Much Everyone In Italy Is About To Go On Strike

italy-protest

Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Monti is in full liberalization swing. I know that Monti does not like the term «liberalization» applied to what he and his government are trying to do — maybe «normalization» is a more appropriate term, in that what Monti is attempting to do is to steer Italy in the direction which countries like the UK and USA have been following for years.

12/25/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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David Cameron attacks Nick Clegg’s EU veto claim

nick-clegg

David Cameron yesterday slapped down a claim by Nick Clegg that Britain would one day sign up to the EU treaty he vetoed.

The Deputy Prime ­Minister said it would be accepted by the Government «in due course».

But the Prime Minister told MPs there was no chance of him changing his mind.

He said: «The situation is very straightforward. We did not sign the treaty because we did not get the safeguards that we received so that situation is not going to change.

«What our coalition partners put into the manifesto at the next election is entirely up to them.»

Mr Cameron’s remarks came as a draft treaty, agreed by the 26 European leaders who chose to forge ahead without the UK, emerged with significant concessions for Britain.

A leaked draft of the treaty changes that leaders will try to agree at the summit on January 30 shows that controversial reforms of the single market — which Britain has furiously campaigned to stop — have been left out.

Mr Cameron argued the single market — which gives British companies the same rights as other European firms looking for work in the EU — should not be tampered with, while Britain is excluded from discussions.

Meanwhile, the Chancellor George Osborne told MPs at the Treasury Select Committee yesterday that Britain was «prepared to consider» extra funding for the International Monetary Fund to help struggling Eurozone countries.

Mr Osborne said as long as other nations were included in the contribution he would consider increasing the UK’s contribution — but slammed the idea of a «unilateral» contribution from EU nations.

The Chancellor also issued a sharp warning to the banks against making big bonus payouts this year. Mr Osborne said industry had not had «a particularly successful year» which should be reflected in the level of the awards.

Giving evidence to the Commons Treasury Committee, he said he would be taking a «keen interest» in the bonuses paid by the part state-owned Royal Bank of Scotland.

«I am clear that — given the fact that this has not been a particularly successful year for banking — you would expect to see bonuses lower this year,» he told the committee.

12/21/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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EU leaders vow rapid action to control euro crisis

merkel

The leaders of France and Germany have vowed to speed up various measures to ease the eurozone crisis, as the euro flirted with new lows on the market amid signs of heightened banking tensions.

12/20/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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Denmark takes on EU presidency

Denmark

For the first half of this year it is the turn of Denmark to take responsibility of the rotating presidency of the European Union.

12/16/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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Lithuania still planning to adopt euro in 2014 despite domestic, EU troubles: official

flag

Lithuania is still determined to introduce the embattled euro currency in two years, a government official said Tuesday, despite skepticism by the Baltic country’s president.

12/15/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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Irish EU Pact Referendum May Be Vote on Euro, Noonan Says

Irelands-Finance-Minister

Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan said any referendum on the new European Union accord may effectively be a vote on the country’s continued euro membership.

12/9/2011 — Filed under: Politics
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