Activities of Burkhard BALZ related to 2009/2090(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
ECB annual report for 2008 - Report on the 2009 Annual Statement on the Euro Area and Public Finances (debate)
Amendments (11)
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Welcomes the fact that the Treaty of Lisbon would gives the ECB the status of an EU institution; believes that this increases the responsibility of Parliament, as the primary institution through which the ECB is accountable to European citizens;.
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Notes that the ECB continued to respond to the financial crisis by assisting Member States in maintaining and extending its liquidity provisions to credit institutions; recommends that the ECB extend such liquidity outside the euro area to assist those Member States which have been worst hit by the financial crisis;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Expresses concerndisappointment that manysome commercial banks did not pass on interest rate cuts to their customers, and that this was particularly prevalent when the ECB'’s interest rates reached their lowest levels;
Amendment 24 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Expresses disappointment that the extra liquidity injected by the ECB did not sufficiently ease the credit crunch faced by industry, particularly small and medium sized businesses, and was instead used by some banks to improve their margins and cover losses;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Agrees with the ECB that the increasing complexity of financial instruments has l, alongside a certain lack of transparency of financial institutions, supervisory failure by regulators and gaps in financial market regulation, has contributed to heightened systemic risk; adds that this has lcontributed to an increasing lack of public confidence in financial institutions;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. States that Member States should comaintainue with their current their fiscal stimulus measures to protect jobs, encourage investment and stimulate growth and that they should repeal those measures once there is a sustainable return to growth at which time they should address excessive public deficits;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on all Member States in the euro area to take note that, for genuine monetary union to exist, participation in the euro area cannot be regarded as an end in itself, and stresses the need for structural reforms; adds that failure to mundertake such reforms would jeopardise the credibility and sustainability of the Stability and Growth Pact;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new) (before subheading "Governance and decision making")
Paragraph 15 a (new) (before subheading "Governance and decision making")
15a. Points out that, during a period marked by a high degree of exchange rate volatility, the euro has increased its strength, particularly against the US dollar and the renminbi-yuan, and expresses concern that this could have a detrimental effect on the competitiveness of the euro area;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Highlights the independence of the ECB, including the procedure for appointing members to its Executive Board; considers, however, that the new legal status that would be conferred on the ECB under the Lisbon Treaty and the existing ECB Statute should be used to increase the accountability of the ECB to Parliament, for example, if the candidates proposed by the Council were then subject to a vote of approval by Parliament;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Opines that the crisis has demonstrated that markets are prone to systemic risks; welcomes the proposal to establish a European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB), which will provide early warnings about future risks and imbalances in financial markets; notes that a qualitative definition of 'systemic risk' must exist to allow the effective functioning of the ESRB; therefore calls on the ECB to establish clear models and definitions and, more generally, to give full support to the effective functioning of the ESRB; adds that any new tasks conferred upon the ECB with regard to the ESRB should not compromise the independence of the ECB in any way;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Feels that Parliament should work with the ECB and with the other EU institutions in order to strengthencontinue to enhance the role of the euro area on the world financial stage;