Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-09-22-Speech-1-073"
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"en.20080922.19.1-073"2
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".
Mr President, 2007 has continued to be brandished as a possible continuation of the mortgagee crisis. We have been trying to lay this to rest. In June 2007 we should have been hearing even more alarm bells ringing, at least when two hedge funds managed by the New York investment bank Bear Stearns went astray because they were involved on a grand scale in bonds secured by real estate. This was only the beginning of the whole affair! It has become clearer and clearer how these kinds of financial service businesses have been developing with such a low level of transparency. On the one hand a few have been making large profits – in high-risk sectors, of course – while on the other hand we are dealing today with a classic nationalisation of losses. It is not just US economic journalists and economists who are describing this situation in precisely this way. We in the EU as well, in the European Parliament, are changing our perspective willy-nilly, but rather late in the day. It would also be preferable for the Commission to stand out on this.
Both reports – the Rasmussen report and the Lehne report – demonstrate the urgent need for action. By now at least it must be clear to all the political players that the market is not able to regulate itself entirely. The Commission should now also be aware of this. Hedge funds and private equities are already some of the largest employers, but according to many judicial systems, they no longer appear so and are therefore, of course, relieved of their obligations as employers. This is not acceptable; the lack of transparency is too great! In the meantime, thousands of jobs have been put at risk by the financial crisis.
Regulation, supervision, transparency, employee participation and information in the pension funds sector, which are heavily involved in hedge funds and private equities, are vital.
It is important to the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs that employees are not asked to pay out twice, Commissioner: once due to the financial crisis
and once due to risk-sharing by pension funds. In order for this not to happen, Directive 2003/41/EC should at least ensure that employees must be kept informed directly or indirectly by trustees about the type and risk of the investment of their pensions and they must be given a voice in decisions. This is just one of many facets that we have highlighted in our reports and opinions.
Commissioner, you are now being asked to do something. I know we can talk about a lot of things, but you are duty-bound to assist. The legislative period is not yet over. I should like to draw your attention to this."@en1
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