Opposition to French climbdown will prove too strong
Cheese-eating surrender monkeys was how the French were once described. The British government would be too polite to use such terms but its disquiet over the ECOFIN council’s decision to back the French council president’s compromise watering down of the Solvency II proposals was plain to see.
But the white flag has not been raised. The French presidency runs until the end of the month. They the Czechs then bounce into the chair and cheese-eating surrender monkeys the Czechs are not. Hopes are pinned on them helping bring back the original proposals.
The Dutch to will weigh in behind the original proposals too. As they have pointed out, the French presidency’s compromise goes against the Commission’s proposals so there is, in effect a stalemate. The Commission will want to get its own way.
And – as ever with Europe – there is another layer of bureaucracy to wade through in the form of the European Parliament. That will now debate the issues and submit rafts of amendments. The rapporteur on Solvency II is British Labour MEP Peter Skinner, who can be expected to push the UK government’s line.
The UK government was rightly furious yesterday – a view backed by the Association of British Insurers. The feeling that all the hard work over the past few years had been treated with contempt was compounded by the ECOFIN secretariat’s failure yesterday to publish notes of the meeting in any language other than French.
But, as history proves, the battle with the French is not over yet. Victory may not now be swift and any delay – particularly if it drags on for a year or two – is not helpful, but victory will come.
