McCreevy 'like paid lobbyist to finance industry'

Ireland’s EU Commissioner Charlie McCreevy was accused today of behaving like a “paid lobbyist of the finance industry” in his handling of Europe’s response to the economic crisis.

The damning attack is contained in a letter to his boss, Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, complaining that Mr McCreevy has ignored pledges from EU governments and the Commission, as well as demands from MEPs, for new rules covering all financial areas, including unregulated hedge funds and private equity.

And McCreevy is also accused of using insulting and inflammatory language about European politicians’ desire to legislate.

Signed by Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, President of the Party of European Socialists, and Martin Schulz, leader of the European Parliament’s Socialist group, the letter says: “We are writing to express our dismay at the increasingly obvious fact that Commissioner McCreevy is trying to avoid implementing the demands of the European Parliament for regulation covering all financial players.”

It says his tactics are contrary to the will of MEPs, national ministers, and the Commission itself, that hedge funds and private equity should not escape tight surveillance.

“To add to this insult, he now pleads with industry to help him avoid regulation, using inflammatory and insulting language about the Parliament or perhaps member state Governments,” the letter goes on.

The letter says a recent European Parliament report on financial market reform is a legislative report, agreed overwhelmingly by all mainstream political groups, and called for rules covering all financial sectors.

But earlier this month Mr McCreevy had told MEPs he would be launching a “consultation” – having staged one two years ago.

“We don’t need new consultations, we need concrete proposals and actions as the Parliament has requested,” complains the letter.

It accuses Mr McCreevy of being provocative in a recent speech to the British Venture Capital Association in London, when he told the organisation it could avoid regulation by signing up to industry “guidelines”.

The letter says: “He did so using inflammatory language about ’trigger happy regulators’ and ’indiscriminate’ regulation. We can only assume that he is referring to the (European) Parliament or member state governments, as no others have influence on EU regulation.

Mr McCreevy’s message, the letter says, is in contrast to assurances to MEPs that no financial sector will escape regulation.

“This is too much,” it concludes. “Commissioner McCreevy’s actions demonstrate a total absence of respect for the European Parliament, and appear to be more appropriate for a paid lobbyist of the finance industry than a European Commissioner.

“His consultations are, in our minds, little more than time-wasting exercises embarked upon with the hope that they might provide further excuses for him not to carry out the will of the Parliament.

“We have lost trust and confidence in Commissioner McCreevy.”

The letter urges President Barroso to make sure the Commission does produce proposals for financial rules across the board, as promised to MEPs.