BANK of Italy Governor Mario Draghi has won a European Parliament committee’s endorsement to succeed Jean-Claude Trichet as head of the European Central Bank.

The EU commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn has warned against complacency about reducing debt.

The UK should pay back Ireland any significant profit it makes from charging high interest rates in its £7bn (€8.3bn) bailout of the country, a senior Liberal Democrat MEP said today.

FRENCH and German MEPS have once again raised the spectre of the contentious Irish corporation tax rate after they issued a declaration denouncing the Irish rate and calling for a minimum EU rate of 25%.

A LOOMING international crisis triggered by over-risky lending by financial institutions will be central to discussions at the two-day meeting of EU finance ministers beginning today.

MEPs want to slash mobile phone roaming charges — not just for making calls but also for receiving and sending text messages and data.

GOVERNMENT and opposition MEPs have called on the European Commission to investigate the attempted e1.4 billion takeover of Aer Lingus by Ryanair.

THE European Central Bank cannot judge how an economy already wracked by war fears would react to fighting, ECB President Wim Duisenberg said on Monday signalling interest rates will stay on hold awhile longer.