Pools voorzitterschap pleit voor beter economisch management op EU-niveau (en)

‘As Poland and as the Presidency in the EU Council we are not afraid and should not be afraid of those measures which would beef up economic management in the European Union,’ said Prime minister Donald Tusk i in Friday’s address to the Sejm (lower house of parliament).

The Polish government chief emphasised that Poland, which now holds the six-month European Union Presidency, will itself undertake active efforts to bolster economic management in the EU. Poland is concentrating on completing work on what has been called the ‘six-pack’: a packet of six legislative acts (regulations and directives) strengthening economic management. ‘We are acting to have those six acts passed in the European Parliament’ Tusk said.

Speaking in Sejm, Prime Minister addressed also the issue of the conclusions of recent meeting of German Chancellor Angela Merkel i and French President Nicolas Sarkozy i. ‘We are not afraid that the result of meetings of euro zone politicians will be the strengthening of economic management in the euro zone, because the euro zone is absolutely necessary,’ Prime Minister Tusk emphasised. He recalled that Poland’s economic is closely tied to the euro zone both in the export and import dimension.

‘We plan to emphasise in Brussels also in our bilateral relations that after that meeting and other meetings the Polish Presidency will expect much tougher decisions regarding economic management. We are not afraid of elements of strong authority emerging over the European economy. We will strive to have them truly emerge, because that provides an opportunity to discipline those in the euro zone who overturn the sense of its existence through their lack of discipline. Without hysteria but resolutely we will expect euro zone leaders to finally begin enforcing the principles adopted in the zone towards all euro zone members,’ Prime Minister Tusk told the Sejm.

‘We shall have to jointly resolve the dilemma as to whether we want effective economic governance in Europe, including its euro zone, at the cost of inevitably reducing certain areas of the European states’ independence, or do we prefer loosening the discipline and having an economically weak Europe in the management realm in exchange for defending the rights of national states,’ concluded Polish Prime Minister.

Representatives of the Presidency are currently engaged in preparing a response to the crisis.Minister of Finance Jacek Rostowski will participate in the meeting of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament, which will be held on 29 August 2011 and will be devoted to economic management in the EU. The meeting will also be attended by Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker i, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet i, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Olli Rehn i and Chairman of the Financial Stability Forum Mario Draghi i.

On 30 August Prime Minister Donald Tusk will visit Brussels, where he will meet with President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso i.

Konrad Niklewicz, Spokesman of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union