On December 8, the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) must decide who succeeds the German Werner Hoyer as president of the European Investment Bank (EIB), the financial arm of the European Union that is called to play a prominent role in the Time to channel European Next Generation funds. The first vice president and minister of Economy, Trade and Business is the favorite along with the former head of Competition at the European Commission, the Danish Margrethe Vestager.
Although she has a good chance of being elected – having won the support of Germany, one of the three states that has the most weight in the organization – the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, decided to keep Calviño at the head of economic policy. between now and the end of the year (if elected he would take office in January) to send a message of continuity and confidence and give him a little more time with which to complete the work started throughout this semester of the Spanish presidency of the European Council. This means that Economía is currently in a waiting period until it is made public if, finally, Calviño moves to Luxembourg, headquarters of the EIB.
Sources close to the ministry assure that the vice president will not, in principle, make substantial changes to the teams, where movements are expected in the event that the Galician leaves her current positions in Pedro Sánchez’s government. During this pause, the request for the fourth design of European funds, worth 10 billion euros, for which there is still no specific date, could also be delayed somewhat. A spokesperson for the European Commission recently assured this newspaper that “it is only up to the Spanish authorities to present the request for the fourth payment.”
In the event that her appointment to the EIB did not occur, the same sources assure that the first vice president would have a new window of opportunity to occupy a position at the European level in six months, starting from the holding of the elections to the European Parliament that They will take place between June 6 and 9, 2024. These will give rise to a new ‘dance’ of economic and political seats, and Calviño could apply for a relevant position in community institutions. From then on, she will decide who holds the presidency of the European Commission (for which Ursula von der Leyen will not announce until the end of the year whether she is finally running for re-election), that of the European Council or the positions of commissioners. .
Nadia Calviño is a great connoisseur of community institutions, where she has held relevant positions, such as head of the Commission’s Budget after the financial crisis (2014-2018), deputy director general of Financial Services (2010-2014). or deputy general director in the General Directorate of Competition (2006-2010). The ‘number two’ of the Executive has already opted for the presidency of the Eurogroup and was also a candidate for managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The pending issues of his ministry
At the moment, his ministry has important challenges between now and the end of the year, such as trying to move forward with the reform of fiscal rules, given that on January 1 the escape clause of the Stability and Growth Pact will no longer be activated. The Government of Berlin, in favor of setting numerical deficit and debt targets for Member States, has intensified contacts with France, in favor of a little more flexibility that allows European partners to maintain investment and avoid the mistakes of the last financial crisis. . . Berlin also sees an agreement possible before the end of the year. Another priority would be to approve the European regulation for the use of artificial intelligence, a pioneering regulation.
The early call for elections and the dissolution of the Cortes caused around fifty laws and projects to remain in limbo, ranging from expanding the scope of the Code of Good Practices for families with mortgages – a key initiative when the The European Central Bank has recognized that interest rates will remain high for longer than expected, according to the Financial Client Defense Authority Law. Regarding the first, El Confidencial reported that Calviño intended to hold a meeting with the bank in December to address this matter given his possible departure to the EIB.
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