EU Parliament President Schulz to EuroFora at EU Growth Summit: For an EU Rating Agency !

*Brussels/EU Summit/Angelo Marcopolo/- New EU Parliament's President, experienced, long-time MEP Martin Schulz, replying to an "EuroFora" question during the 1st EU Summit in Brussels focused mainly on Growth (in addition to Financial Stabilization, already decided last year, on 2011, as EU Council's President Van Rompoy observed), openly anounced his support for the creation of an EU Rating Agency :

- "I am in favour of a European Rating Agency !", stressed from the outset, in a crystal-clear way, the German SocialDemocrat MEP who has just started to chair EU Parliament for the period 2012-2à14 thanks to an interparty agreement (See infra).

 - "A dispassionate Observer might be led to conclude that Anonymous Rating Agencies in New York are more Powerful than Democratically Elected Governments and Parliaments", denounced earlier Schulz in his inaugural speech at EU Parliament in Strasbourg, shortly after his election, on the base of an overall political agreement with EPP's head, French MEP Joseph Daul, including the sharing of top EU jobs, such as at the head of EU Commission and Parliament, etc. (See previous "EuroFora"s NewsReports, already sent to Subscribers/Donors, on Schulz's election, earlier this month in Strasbourg).

The move followed, in particular a recent series of negative reports to the detriment of many EU Countries mainly by Standard and Pöors' USA Rating Agency, at least some of which were felt by many as unjust, while critical questions were also raised by the fact that Rating Agencies had reportedly postponed any next negative anouncement on American Economy (whose Debt is notoriously higher than €urozone's average), until 2013, i.e. after the Fall 2012 USA Presidential Elections, while, on the contrary, in Europe, S&P published immediately a controversial negative Rating, f.ex. for France, even just only 100 Days before the forthcoming Presidential Elections, (even if, finally, Paris succeeded to easily overcome that challenge, thanks also to ECB'"s support)...

Meanwhile, at least a European Businessman anounced, earlier, his intention to stat trying to build from scraps the first European Rataing Agency, based on an original concept of Responsibility vis a vis rated entities.

+ "That's good: That's the Right thing to do !", agreed on this point, shortly afterwards, the mainstreama, long-time MEP, Elmar Brok, President of EU Parliament's Foreign affairs Committee, speaking to "EuroFora" on, Schulz's stance about creating a brand new EU Rating Agency

Brok's positive stance vis a vis Schulz's view on the creation of an EU Rating Agency came in the context of EU Parliament new President's earlier plea, both to EU Heads of State/Government and speaking to Journalists in Brussels, including "EuroFora", to "combine" Financial Stability with Investment also for Growth, with a particular attention also for jobs, concerning mainly Young People.

Soon after Schulz ended his Press Conference, the area was literally covered by Flyers and a Printed Booklet, translated in many EU Languages, containing EU Commission's President, José Barroso's (a ChristianDemocrat/EPP from Portugal) Plan, precisely focused on "Growth and Jobs : Next Steps"...

The plan on Barroso's presentation to EU Summit was spectacularly distributed to the Press, immediately after inside big boxes Symbolically headed "for the Future".
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

As "EuroFora" witnessed, Barroso, apparently had, indeed, worked up to the last minute in order to prepare his contribution to the EU Summit on Growth and Competitivity, so that, exceptionally, he was the ... Last among the invited EU Heads of State/Government and othert personalities  (f.ex. ECB's new President Draghi, as well as Schulz himself for EU Parliament, etc) which arrived  today at EU Council's doorstep, one after the other.     

+ However, the  EPP - Socialists' agreement on main EU survival and Global rang didn't yet produce similar results : Schulz depicted as almost non-existent an initial EU Summit's draft, which cirsulated among ChristianDemocrat/EPP Heads of State/Government, and reiterated his preference for controversial "EuroBonds", etc., asking anew to be given a "full participation" inside EU Council, and threatening, indirrectly but surely, that EU Parliament might take its revenge in case of refusal by EU Council, when the moment will come for MEPs to vote for Legislative Measures according to EU Heads of State/Government's Plan to stimulate Growth.

But German ChristianDemocrat/EPP mainstream, long-time MEP, the experienced Elmar Brok, (EU Parliament'"s Political Commitee Chair, f. EU Enlargement Rapporteur, as well as former EU Parliament's representative to EU Institutional Reforms, etc), speaking shortly afterwards to "EuroFora" and other Journalists in Brussels, stressed that he prefered for EU Parliament and EU Council to cooperate, naturally, but while staying well Distinct and Differend, without making any Confusion possible in EU Citizen'"s views, almost "as Montesquieu's (famous) Distinction of Powers" Historically described as a landmark characteristic of Democracy.

Most important, in conclusion, Brok didn't believe, contrary to Schulz, that EU Parliament and Council should eventually quarel about institutional "participation" matters (Comp. supra).

- "What counts most is efficiency on substantial issues. EU Citizens simply want important things to be done, and they don't care so much about procedures, etc", he added.