BERLIN (MNI) – Germany’s upper house, the Bundesrat representing
the 16 states, wants to be informed by the government in advance of any
aid measures for fiscally ailing Eurozone states but does not seek veto
power, a senior official from a state government said Thursday.
The source explained that a majority of states will demand at
Friday’s Bundesrat session that such a requirement of notification be
part of the new bill on the European Financial Stability Facility
(EFSF).
The government camp has already signaled that it will include such
a clause in the EFSF bill, he said.
“However, the Bundesrat will not seek the right to block aid
measures by the EFSF,” the official stressed.
The source explained that the Bundesrat acknowledges thereby that
it has fewer rights on federal budget matters than the lower house, the
Bundestag. The new EFSF bill will give the Bundestag far-reaching veto
rights on future aid measures for ailing Eurozone states.
The official explained that it would make the EFSF too inflexible
if the Bundesrat also had to approve individual aid measures by the
EFSF. “The Bundesrat meets only ten times a year,” he reminded. “But the
EFSF must be in a position to make quick decisions.”
–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@marketnews.com
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