Financial Sector has European Commission in Stranglehold, argues new report PDF Print E-mail
Andy Rowell
A ground-breaking new analysis undertaken by the ALTER-EU Coalition has found that the vast majority of financial ‘experts’ advising the European Commission represent the very same companies responsible for the global economic crisis.

The Captive Commission report, which examines the role of the Commission’s finance ‘Expert Groups’, the groups which give advice to the Commission shows:

• There are more corporate employees helping draft Europe’s financial policies than Commission civil servants: with at least 229 corporate advisors compared to 150 DG Internal Market policy-making staff.
• Fewer than 10% of the Commission’s advisers represent the interests of workers and less than 5% represent the interests of consumers

• The Commission is breaking its own rules by listening almost exclusively to the finance industry.

There are 19 Expert Groups – which give advice on financial issues. Within these 19 groups:

•    Industry experts outnumber representatives from academia, consumer groups and trade unions by a ratio of 4:1.

•    7 groups consist mainly of representatives from member states. 8 of remaining 12 groups are dominated by industry; only 1 group has equal non-government and industry membership; 3 do not disclose their full membership.

Case studies within the report show:

•    Members of the Expert Group reviewing EU rules to tackle tax evasion are simultaneously seeking ways to undermine the effectiveness of these rules;

•    The Commission has charged a private sector body with a vested interest to act as a de facto referee on accountancy standards, standards which were drawn up
by a body dominated by the accountancy profession;

•    The Commission’s expert advisory groups looking at the regulation of hedge funds are made up exclusively of representatives from the industry, with staff from the Commission performing only a secretariat function.

•    The Commission asked that the role played by Credit Rating Agencies in the financial crisis be examined by an expert group – it consisted of 21 people from financial companies, most of which are involved in securities trading.

Paul de Clerck, from ALTER-EU argues: “The Commission only seems to be interested in listening to the advice of the finance industry, rather than acting in the interests of society. If it wants to restore confidence in our financial systems, it must break free of this stranglehold of partial advice.”

In response, the the Commission says it was "unfair" of Alter-EU to concentrate solely on the financial sector.

One Commission official added: "If you want financial advice you don't ask a baker."

But then he doesn't get it, does he? You don't just have to ask bankers - there is a whole cross-section of society who could have valuable input into how the EU regulates the sector ...

 

 

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