Activities of Gunnar HÖKMARK related to 2017/2114(INI)
Plenary speeches (3)
Economic policies of the euro area (debate)
Economic policies of the euro area (debate)
Economic policies of the euro area (debate)
Reports (1)
REPORT on the economic policies of the euro area PDF (450 KB) DOC (102 KB)
Amendments (20)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 a (new)
Citation 1 a (new)
- having regard to the report of the European Fiscal Board on "Assessment of the prospective fiscal stance appropriate for the euro area" of 20 June 2017,
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 b (new)
Citation 1 b (new)
- having regard to the Occasional Paper No 182 on a 'Euro area fiscal stance' by the European Central Bank of January 2017,
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the good performance of the European economy, supported by moderate GDP growth, surpassing the pre- crisis level, and decreasing, yet still high, unemployment rates; notes that the modest recovery remains fragile and that the development of GDP per capita is close to stagnation;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Notes with concern that GDP and productivity growth rates remain below full potential and that there is therefore no time for complacency, and that this moderate recovery requires relentless efforts if it is to achieve greater resilience through higher growth and employment;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Considers that for this to materialise the structural conditions for growth need to be improved; takes the view that the potential growth of all Member States should increase in the long term to at least 3 %; for this to happen, establishing clear benchmarks on how to improve the potential growth of Member States could provide the necessary guidance for policy actions; points out that such a regular benchmarking exercise would have to take due account of individual structural strengths and weaknesses of Member States and should include areas such as the digital economy, the services sector, the energy market, but also the quality of public services, conditions for investment, the inclusiveness and preparedness of education systems;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6 a. Takes the view that the current environment of low interest rates offers additional opportunities for Member States to implement structural reforms;
Amendment 150 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Is of the opinion that legacies from the crisis such as a high level of indebtedness in all sectors of the economy still act as a drag on growth and pose potential downward risks; is concerned in this regard that the persistently high level of non- performing loans in some Member States could have significant spill-over effects from one Member State to another, presenting a risk to financial stability in Europe;
Amendment 173 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Agrees on the need for reforms that improve productivity and boost price and non-price competitiveness in order to better support growth;
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Underlines that structural reforms in housing, products, services and labour markets must be a priority in the Member States;
Amendment 222 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11 b. Underlines that fiscal stimulus, where possible, through lower taxes can support domestic demand, social security and supply of investments and labour;
Amendment 265 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14 a. Stresses that a fully functioning Capital Markets Union can, in a longer perspective, provide alternative financing to SMEs, complementing that of the banking sector;
Amendment 299 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Welcomes the fact thatin this regard the fact that public finances appear to be improving as deficits in the euro area are projected to decline; is concerned, however, that this process is slowing down and agrees that government debt remains too high in some Member States;
Amendment 310 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. WAgrees with the Commission that the government debt remains high in some Member States and that there is a need to make public finances sustainable; warns that low interest rate payments, accommodative monetary policies, one-off measures and other factors alleviating the current debt burden are only temporary and that sound fiscal policies must be self- sustaining and take into account future liabilities;
Amendment 336 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Points out that the current aggregate fiscal stance for the euro is broadly neutral and presents an appropriate balance of debt sustainability requirements with support for investment; in this context, welcomes the first assessment of the prospective fiscal stance appropriate for the euro area by the independent European Fiscal Board (EFB) and notes that the EFB recommends a neutral fiscal stance for the euro area as a whole and does not support a case for discretionary fiscal expansion;
Amendment 346 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20 a. Agrees that a better coordination of the implementation of structural reforms, in particular through the improved implementation of and commitment to the country specific recommendations by the Member States, would create positive spill over effects;
Amendment 351 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 b (new)
Paragraph 20 b (new)
20 b. Welcomes the timely publication of the implementation of the 2016 country specific recommendations (CSR) and the presentation of the 2017 draft country specific recommendations by the Commission;
Amendment 352 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 c (new)
Paragraph 20 c (new)
20 c. Notes positively that over time Member States have made progress with two thirds of the recommendations;takes however the view that the implementation of the CSRs is still lagging behind and expects a greater commitment by Member States to take the necessary policy actions based on the agreed CSRs;
Amendment 353 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 d (new)
Paragraph 20 d (new)
20 d. Is looking forward to the upcoming work of the EFB also regarding its other key task to assess the application of the EU fiscal rules and the upcoming annual report announced for autumn;
Amendment 354 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 e (new)
Paragraph 20 e (new)
20 e. Reminds of the uncertainties surrounding fiscal stance assessment and points out that any policy recommendation regarding the euro area fiscal stance should err on the side of caution;
Amendment 362 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21 a. Welcomes that the recommendations by the Commission for the CSR include now for the first time limits to nominal growth rate of net primary government expenditure and the corresponding annual structural adjustment of GDP, based on the commonly agreed adjustment matrix;