Competition Commissioner-designate, Joaquín Almunia, was asked to use his powers to ensure taxpayers never again have to bail out the financial sector by Euro MP Arlene McCarthy, the Vice President of the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, today (Tuesday 12 January).

The European Parliament committee held a three hour "hearing" today for the new Commissioner-designate.
 
Arlene McCarthy said: "The public are furious that bankers intend to pay themselves billions of Euros in bonuses from profits made on the back of massive taxpayer support given to rescue the banking system."

"Mr Almunia has given a commitment that he will join us in standing up for taxpayers, consumers and investors and delivered a clear message to the banks at his hearing today that profits from public subsidy must not be paid out in bonuses. He pledged to look very very closely at how banks are using public subsidies."

Mr Almunia also pledged his support to Arlene McCarthy's call for a financial transaction tax or bank levy to ensure taxpayers do not bear the cost of future bail-outs.

Arlene said: "Mr Almunia clearly stated that the public should never again have to pay for the excessive risk taking of bankers and that banks should be made to take responsibility for their failings through a levy or financial transaction tax".
 
ENDS

Notes to editors:

Joaquín Almunia, from Spain, is the proposed Commissioner for Competition. His hearing was held 16:30 to 19:30 today (Tuesday 12 January 2010). The European Parliament holds hearings into all the proposed members of the new Commission which will be in office from 2010 until the end of 2014. The Parliament must then accept or reject the proposed 26 Member Commission.

For more information see:
 www.europarl.europa.eu/hearings/default.htm?language=en

Full text of Arlene's question to Commissioner-Designate Almunia:

Commissioner, the fact is that the banking sector has been bailed out by taxpayers by an estimated 5.3 trillion dollars, more than the annual GDP of Germany, and the public is rightly angry that billions of Euros are to be paid out in bonuses from profits made on the back of this government support and the reduction in competition between banks due to the crisis.