Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-07-03-Speech-2-109"
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"en.20010703.6.2-109"2
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". – Mr President, I shall try to answer some of the points raised by Members. I have already addressed in my introductory statement the most important ones contained in the two resolutions.
In its resolution the European Parliament has also made various suggestions. I will not comment on all of them but the European Parliament also suggests what I just said, namely encouraging banks to open their counters on 1 January, a point which is fully welcomed and supported by the ECB. It has been suggested that the date of the annual sales should be changed, postponing them by a few weeks. The ECB is neutral on this point, but I see the merits in it.
Lower fees for credit cards and other electronic means of payment have been mentioned. This is currently envisaged in Austria, Belgium and Finland. Here, too, the ECB, because of the nature of the subject, is neutral but I would encourage national authorities to listen carefully to the European Parliament.
Returning to the questions that have been asked, I would say that instead of frontloading, our information campaign, as it develops from 30 August onwards and intensifies over the months to come until the end of this year and in the first couple of weeks of next year, will be such that the public at large will, I am sure, be fully familiar by 1 January, with how the bank notes will look with their security features. One element of this campaign is that, in the first or second week of December, we will distribute 300 million leaflets to every citizen of the euro area, fully describing the new bank notes and the procedures of the cash changeover. Mr Maaten asked a question which amused me: "What if, in the last few days ministers do change their minds and do nevertheless start frontloading bank notes?" With all due respect, not only to Mr Maaten but also to the ministers, the ministers cannot take such a decision because in the Treaty they have handed over the competence for the issue of bank notes to their national central banks and the ECB. Only the ECB, the Eurosystem, can decide when the bank notes will be distributed and that will be on 1 January 2002.
I wish to add some points. Mrs Randzio-Plath asked about the secondary objective in the Treaty. It is our strong belief that if the ECB is successful in maintaining price stability, and thereby creating an environment of predictable stability for entrepreneurs, that is the best contribution that the ECB can make to fostering growth of output and employment. Should the European Parliament be involved, if the Treaty is ever changed, in the appointment of the Executive Board? That is an issue the Executive Board should stay out of. However, the European Parliament is already involved in appointing members of the Executive Board in the same way as the Governing Council of the ECB is involved. On a proposal by the ministers of finance, the European Parliament and the Governing Council of the ECB, Parliament can offer advice so as to enable the Heads of State and the Council to reach a decision.
I fully agree that monetary policy should work not in isolation but in ever closer coordination. However, the ECB will never engage in coordination of our policies with other policies in the economic and financial field, because this would prejudice our primary objective under the Treaty, namely to preserve price stability.
Many points were made about the resolution. I have already addressed some of them in my introductory statement. I am grateful to Mrs Peijs and Mr von Wogau for their support on various points, namely the guarantee of the independence of the Central Bank. I say to both Mrs Berès and Mrs Randzio-Plath, that in no way – and they already know it – would the ECB shy away from a dialogue with the European Parliament or its committees. That has been proven in the past and we will continue to prove it in the future.
Mrs Peijs asked the obvious question: can you stay? The answer I always give, and give again, is "yes". She also pleaded for cross-border transfers to be as costly or as cheap as domestic transfers. I agree with her completely. It may take a little longer than 1 January 2002 to achieve it. However, I believe that in a single market with a single currency, the distinction should disappear, but it may take some time.
I turn to the important subject of frontloading, which has been mentioned by Mr Maaten in his draft resolution and by many other Members. Specific questions have been asked: is it possible or advisable to change the automatic teller machines a few days earlier than 1 January 2002. The answer is "no". That would seriously damage the payments system at the busiest time of the year, namely the last few days of December. The automatic teller machines must still be able to distribute national currencies. If they were disabled for that purpose, the payments system would be seriously damaged. It has to be remembered that between 70% and 80% of total bank note distribution is through automatic teller machines.
It is also important because we too see the potential for problems arising. It is important that the machines are converted as soon as possible. In five countries the old automatic teller machines will have been converted by 1 January. That applies to the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Ireland and Luxembourg. In other countries it may take a little while longer, but that is mainly due to the fact that some of these machines are in very remote areas which are not serviced every day, for example in Finland and Spain. It will take a little longer there but in the majority of countries the conversion will take place within one week. In five countries it will occur within one day.
Mr Maaten also asked in his resolution for some priority to be given to the dispersal of small EUR 5 and EUR 10 bank notes in automatic teller machines. This point is well covered in the national changeover scenarios. Apart from Finland, in all other countries it is envisaged to dispense, at least in some of the automatic teller machines, the EUR 5 and EUR 10 notes exclusively via ATMs in the first few days of next year.
There are in place fuller steps that could be taken to smooth the changeover, for example establishing temporary exchange points, for instance in supermarkets. We encourage that. In countries where welfare payments are still largely paid in cash we encourage the use of lower denomination bank notes. We are encouraging banks to open their counters on 1 January 2002. At this juncture, this is envisaged in Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. We urge other countries to consider the same measures as well."@en1
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