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Germany hits out at Britain over ‘blocks’ on strict rules
Allan Hall in Berlin23 Sep 2009
A yawning chasm between Britain and Europe on regulation of financial markets has opened up with an astonishing attack on the City of London today by the left-wing German finance minister Peer Steinbrück.
Hours ahead of the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, Steinbrück says Britain is “doing its best” to block the introduction of stricter financial market regulations.
“There is clearly a lobby in London that wants to defend its competitive advantage tooth and nail,” Steinbrück told Germany's Stern magazine in an interview.
He added Britain was having “an especially hard time, to put it politely”, agreeing to tougher regulation of hedge funds.
Stern wrote; “In Great Britain he sees dark powers at work which retard sharper rules for the financial sector.”
Steinbrück went on: “The British financial industry gains 15% of the gross domestic product, in Germany is it 6%.”
Britain, he says, is out of step with the rest of Europe in trying to keep this “advantage going”.
He wants London and other financial markets to “share the burden” of paying for the financial crisis in the form of a tax on stock exchanges.
And in a phrase analysts said was directed at the Square Mile he warned: “We will effectively change the rules on the financial markets.
“Each euro which we can collect from the financial markets relieves the taxpayer,” he said.
Reader views (22)
Typically for the British, you rely on and spread totally wrong nunbers. Of course, Carsten "living in London" got the numbers wrong: Public debt of GDP 2008 was 66% in Germany and 68% in the UK, not 58%. Also, numbers of EU contributions should be clarified: Germany paid a total of 21% with about 17% of the population, the UK paid 13% with 12% of population. The UK is only 5th in annual contributions to the EU (2006), not "in fact second", even behind an economically rather weak nation such as Spain. In 2006, the UK spent 8.3 billions of Euros for the EU, just 1.5 billion of Euros ahead of economic giant Greece! Nevertheless, it makes you wonder why such a "strong" econonomy as the British could not pay a bit more. Nowadays, a high percentage of wins (15% in the UK vs. 6% in Germany) in the financial sector is meaningless, because it involves illusionary transactions that lead to the collapse of the American-British idea of economy. In fact, the neoliberal capitalism, favoured so much in the UK, was built just on greed and wishful thinking. However, now, when the consequences are too harsh, all bankers and entrepreneurs cry for their mummy: the state and the taxpayer have to help us! What a paradoxical turn to socialism. There is another indicator of the British economic failure, not mentioned here in this discussion. The pound has nearly reached parity with the Euro, and will probably go down much further within the next years.
- Peter Goettig, salzburg, 23/09/2009 23:15
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And it is these enemies of UK that the loathsome McShane wants us to love.
- John Bell, Nottm, UK, 23/09/2009 20:40
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Before the credit crunch when most of Europe were calling for regulation of the financial sector across Europe, Gordon Brown on behalf of the Great Britain blocked it and the result was the near collapse of Western economy partially caused by greedy and selfish bankers who took too many risks. Now most of Europe are calling for stricter regulations of the financial industries and our government and their gospel of light regulation which has worked so brilliantly in the past are blocking it again. To make matters worse our politicians are now telling us that to get out of the huge debts we are in after bailing out the banks, there will be public sector cuts. How the bankers must have laughed. As James once sang, “getting away with it all messed up”.
- Bishopay, London., 23/09/2009 19:49
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Germany should be reminded that the UK has to go along with what the US tells it to do so why bother .
T H Leeds
- Thomas Hayes, Leeds UK, 23/09/2009 19:28
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when will people realize that any tax imposed to any business is passed directly to the consumers.large taxes on businees means less money in the little guys pocket.
- William, vero us, 23/09/2009 17:38
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Like so many leftie liberal wet heads Comrade Steinbrück is actually motivated by envy. Roughly translated “The British financial industry gains 15% of the gross domestic product, in Germany is it 6%.” means John Bull's got a bigger one than Helmut Hunn!
- Steve, Bromley, 23/09/2009 17:03
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“There is clearly a lobby in London that wants to defend its competitive advantage tooth and nail,”
As opposed to the Germans and their protectionism of their car industry. What a total hypocrite!
- Robert C, London UK, 23/09/2009 16:52
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Before there are any more anti British comments especially from abroad, have a look at the debt/GDP ratios (Germany: 64.8% vs. UK: 58.7%, OECD). If that isn't enough, have a look at the true unemployment figures and where they have been over the past few years. Then anyone will realize that Germany has plenty of work to do at home and should focus on just that.
- Carsten, left Germany to live in London, 23/09/2009 16:44
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Not British, tt - What are you on? "Germany pays 8 billion euroes into EU. Britain not even 1." I suggest you take a closer look at each country's financial contributions again.
- Wa, Oxfordshire, UK, 23/09/2009 16:23
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Not British, tt.
People like you are the reason why people like me are glad that the British Isles are just that, islands.
If the German people are happy to pay €8,000,000 into EU coffers per annum, then that is up to them. What WE do is OUR business. We don't want to be part of your grubby little pseudo-state, and nor do the Irish for that matter, not at the price being demanded.
- Mike B, London, United Kingdom, 23/09/2009 16:04
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In less than a fortnight the Irish get to vote AGAIN for or against the EU treaty, it looks like they'll be bribed into a "yes" vote. Blair, Mandelson et al will be doing back flips of celebration and the rest of us will be towing the line. Germany, France and Brussels will have got their way and the "yawning chasm" won't exist as we will have to do as we are told. Last one out turn off the lights please.
- Cratchet, HLC, LINCOLNSHIRE., 23/09/2009 15:50
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Exactly when Europe should be holding together - trust politicians to put their own careers and national interests first.
- Rob Simon, Newcastle, 23/09/2009 15:22
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Angela Merkel should not expect any help from Brown, who is beholden to the City. It is apparent that the great damage done to the British economy is because it has far too many spivs as a proportion than Germany. Germans are not dumb enough to follow suit as another commentator suggests.
- Ram2009, Reading, UK, 23/09/2009 14:48
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Ehr "Not British" I think you should take a look at Debt/GDP ratios and I think you might get a very rude shock! Your incredible anti-British comments are both arrogant and ill informed. May I remind you that you are writing in a British newspaper and you are free to return to Germany at any time?
- James Macleod Ritchie, Oyster Bay Cove, 23/09/2009 14:04
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Mr Pootaato
Your basic German ignorance about financial markets is typical. Let me remind you that it was NOT the hedge funds that caused the financial crisis. The fact is that it was Main Street banks making appalling credit decisions added to which this garbage credit was then re-packaged and "insured" through credit derivatives and sold on. The insane jealousy which drives the Continentals to want to "tax to destyruction" the hedge funds is utterly typical of the Socialist losers. The British as a matter of fact are the second highest contributors to the EU after Germany but don't let the facts get in the way of your rant! It is striking that several German banks were bailed out by the German taxpayer or forced into a merger..Comedy Bank & Dresdner, Hypo etc, . It is screamingly funny to see Germans moving to Tunbridge Wells to declare bankruptcy? The sooner the UK frees itself from the corrupt EU ball & chain run for the benefit of French farmers and German manufacturers the better. In any event the world economic drivers have long left Europe or America, India and China are where its happening! Hopefully the Nu Liebor cabal will be consigned to the garbage can for at least two decades and Britain can rebuild itself free of Euro trash!
- James Macleod Ritchie, Oyster Bay Cove, 23/09/2009 13:55
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Can I remind you that our finance minister, left-wing as though he may seem, is part of a grand coalition with centre-right Angela Merkel in charge. Be sure that she would no doubt support Steinbrück's ideas, simply because they make a lot of sense.
And don't you blame the election campaign for next week's general election. They still make sense.
I don't think calling him left-wing is a way out of this debate.
- Potaato, Munich, Germany, 23/09/2009 12:39
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The UK is responsible for circa 38% of the total EU Financial Services Industry 2nd is Germany with 13%. It also contributed 8% of UK GDP. That is what's at stake and would'nt the German's & French etal like to increase their market share at the UK's expence.
The EU member states have eyed The City and related UK wide with considerable jealosy for years. Let us hope that the current Chancellor does not do a Neville Chamberlain on us. If ever the time was right to cite the National Interest this is it rather than brown nosing Brussels and its French and German cohorts. Be a man Alistair Darling and tel them No.
RAD, Bridge of Cally
- Rad, Bridge of Cally, Scotland, 23/09/2009 12:23
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It is election time in Germany which probably explains it all.
- Ac, UK, 23/09/2009 12:10
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typical british arrogant stupidity.
Germany pays 8 billion euroes into EU. Britain not even 1. Britons dumb population has the highest debt after USA(for you my stupid britons its second highest in the world). British idiocy is fault that this world is in a economical crisis now..
i bet there will be noone in this world happier than europeans when britons will find the way to ship own backward joke of country to american coast.
- Not British, tt, 23/09/2009 11:33
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Well Mein Herr.
You want trouble you'll get it. Don't think the UK will leave the EU Constitution rest after the next UK Election.
Comments like this reveal the basic anti Ango-Saxon motivations of our continental 'partners'.You will make the next Tory government more determined to defend British interests.
- Andrew, Ely UK, 23/09/2009 11:12
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I'm not sure if it is possible to care less what a left wing politician has to say, particularly one from Germany; and this little pearler was interesting:
"“There is clearly a lobby in London that wants to defend its competitive advantage tooth and nail,” Steinbrück told Germany's Stern magazine in an interview"
A lobby? you mean there are people in london who want London to give up its competitive advantage? I wonder how the left extracted this bright spark from the domestic rocket program?
- Scotty, london, 23/09/2009 10:48
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This is pure political deflection, and has no relevance to anything other to curtail London’s earning potential.
Unfortunately this thinking is in keeping with Gordon Browns thinking of smash the English at all costs.
- Ian, Reading, England, 23/09/2009 10:09
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