FRANKFURT (MNI) – The members of the Executive Board of the
European Central Bank have an eight-year term defined by the Treaty and
are supposed to be autonomous with respect to governments, the ECB said
Friday.
Asked whether the ECB had a comment to make in response to attempts
by France and Italy to induce Italian board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi
to resign, a spokesperson replied: “As President [Jean-Claude] Trichet
said at the press conference on June 9, all the members of the Executive
Board have been appointed for eight years according to their contract.”
“This period of eight years is laid down in the Treaty itself,” the
statement continued. “Members of the Executive Board all take their
decisions in full independence.”
France and Italy would like to see Bini Smaghi, whose term expires
on May 31, 2013, step aside so that after his fellow Italian Mario
Draghi succeeds Trichet, a French citizen can be appointed, leaving each
of the four major Eurozone economies with one national on the board.
–Frankfurt bureau tel.: +49-69-720142. Email: dbarwick@marketnews.com
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