Does the Eurozone need its own parliament?

What is Europe? There is a geographic sense of Europe that would include Russia and Iceland. There is a cultural sense of Europe that would include Georgia, New Zealand and Cape Verde. And there is a political sense of the word. Politically ‘Europe’ meant the ‘EU’ composed of all its members – until the sovereignty debt crisis, that is. Since then ‘Europe’ more often means the Eurozone of 17 nations rather than the European Union of 27 states. Now, this new meaning of ‘Europe’ is to receive political representation.

Herman Van Rompuy’s  ‘’Issue Paper on Completing the Economic and Monetary Union”[1] published on the European Council website on 12 September 2012 posits the idea that a fiscal union should have its  own budget. This would be an important step forward in building of a true ‘economic’ union. This fiscal union and its budget would in turn necessitate the creation of a treasury office, also excercising budgetary control over national budgets. Hence, there is talk of some sort of a European super-finance minister. The democratic accountability of such a position remains a sensitive issue. Herman Van Rompuy asks the question: ‘’Would a more integrated economic policy framework require dedicated accountability structures specific to the euro area?” In other words, does the Eurozone need its own parliament?

On 17 September a group of foreign ministers led by the German minister Guido Westerwelle brought out a report[2] in which the group stressed the importance of democratic legitimacy and the central role in this process of the European Parliament. Yet they recognised that,  ‘’...if a decision applies only to the Euro area plus other ‘pre-in’ member states who wish to participate, ways should be explored to involve the MEPs from these countries...”. In other words, the Eurozone will borrow democratic oversight from the existing European Parliament to codecide (or, to be consulted) on Eurozone-related issues, in the same way that for over a year the Eurozone has already borrowed its democratic oversight from the European Council. Why? Because the Eurozone-related issues are of much more concern to the Eurozone governments,  and MEPs are already elected from the Eurozone states. (When the situation falls outside of the EU competences, the national parliaments need to be consulted, too.)

Hence the following scenario: if Mr. Van Rompuy is right, the Eurozone will get its own budget administered by the European treasury. Its democractic accountability (Westerwelle group) would be provided by the Eurozone-elected MEPs. Potentially they would even elect the head of the new institution, ‘’the European Treasurer.” This powerful position would a) administer the Eurozone budget; b) control the national budgets of the countries in the fiscal union; c) chair the Eurogroup finance ministers meetings (currently the role played by the Luxembergish PM Juncker); and d) be fully accountable to the Eurozone MEPs and the national parliamentarians.

Thus is multi-speed Europe born. In its core is a ‘’political union” based on fiscal union, macroeconomic cooperation and budgetary control mechanisms matched with democratic legitimacy. With time, the dichotomy of EU competences vs. national competences in economic affairs will have to be overcome; hence the call for a new European Convention ( an idea promoted most recently also by the Commission President Barroso[3]) to solve this problem. The core institutions of the ‘’political union” include the summits of Eurozone heads of states and governments, the European Treasury, and Eurozone-elected MEPs. The group could even be equipped with a European army (Westerwelle group).

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