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Breaking stories
EU rules attacked as McCreevy joins bank
By Ann Cahill, Europe Correspondent
EU rules on forbidding former European commissioners from taking up jobs that may pose a conflict of interest have come in for fresh criticism after Charlie McCreevy joined the board of a unit of a US bank, Bank of New York Mellon.
The former finance minister agreed last year to give up a directorship in a London-based investor group, NBNK, planning to buy distressed banks, when the commission’s ethics group said it posed a conflict with his previous job in charge of the internal market.Under the code of ethics, commissioners are asked to wait for 12 months before taking up such posts. Mr McCreevy’s latest directorship is understood to have been made in mid-February, almost exactly a year since he left Brussels.
Mr McCreevy joins the board of the Dublin-based Bank of New York Mellon Clearing International, which was set up to deal with derivatives deals — contracts used to limit financial risks for banks and big financial institutions.
Following the financial crisis, Mr McCreevy as commissioner oversaw the regulations governing the market in derivatives and other financial securities.
Labour MEP Nessa Childers said Mr McCreevy waited just one week after his one year ‘cooling-off period’ expired before joining the board of the US bank.
“This new job shows how ridiculous the rules are for former commissioners who wish to join the lobbying industry. Their ‘cooling-off period’ needs to be extended to two years at least.”
She added that the former commissioner’s light-touch approach and reluctance to regulate the financial sector failed to curb speculation in government bonds which contributed to the eurozone crisis.
“This case highlights again the lack of ambition in the revision of the code of conduct for commissioners currently under way. In the draft from December 2010, the notification period is only extended from one year to 18 months.”
Mr McCreevy is entitled to a transition allowance for three years after leaving the commission of 55% of his salary, amounting to just over €11,000 a month.
BNY Mellon employs 1,800 people in Ireland.
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