European Parliament favours Lane for ECB job
The economic committee of the European Parliament sees Irish central bank governor Philip Lane as a stronger candidate for the post of European Central Bank vice president than Spanish economy minister Luis de Guindos, its chairman has said.
EU leaders will consider the candidate put forward by eurozone finance ministers, who are set to formally endorse Mr Lane or Mr de Guindos next Tuesday. The parliament, like the ECB, has only a consultative role and its recommendations are not binding. The parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs had an informal hearing with the two yesterday.
“The majority of the political groups considered governor Lane’s performance more convincing. Some groups expressed reservations for minister De Guindos’s appointment,” the committee’s chairman Roberto Gualtieri said.
Two arguments against Mr de Guindos are that he has no experience in central banking and is an active politician. That could cast doubt over his independence in dealing with macro-prudential policy and financial stability, which are part of the remit of the ECB vice president.
“Luis de Guindos is also a threat to the independence of the ECB. As a long-standing member of the Eurogroup, Mr de Guindos cannot carry out the new office independently,” said Sven Giegold, the spokesman for economic and financial affairs for the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament. Many senior eurozone officials see Mr de Guindos as more likely to get the job, while Mr Lane could succeed ECB chief economist Peter Praet.
n Reuters
