12 December 2014

IPE: European Commission to push ahead with revised IORP Directive

Hill told journalists it would be “odd” to withdraw the revised IORP Directive now, when the Council of the EU had, under the Italian presidency, agreed a number of changes over the course of four compromise drafts.

The EC is set to push ahead with the revised IORP Directive, with the legislation not among the dozens of proposals earmarked for withdrawal in a draft of the executive’s work programme.

The 2015 Work Programme, set to be published on 16 December, outlines president Jean-Claude Juncker’s priorities for the coming year and highlights the launch of the Commission’s €300bn investment plan, among other measures to stimulate growth. The undated draft of the work programme seen by IPE is likely to have been circulated at a meeting of Commission vice-presidents earlier this week. It listed the action plan on the Capital Markets Union and a framework to wind up systemically important financial institutions, such as clearing houses, as two of the new measures the Commission would prioritise in 2015.

In the draft work programme’s preamble, the Commission noted that the European Fund for Strategic Investments would only form part of the €300bn investment programme, with the use of “innovative” financial instruments key. It also identified the completion of the “significant overhaul” of financial regulation in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis as a major area of its work. “The financial regulatory framework,” it added, “will be further strengthened by a proposal dealing with crisis management and resolution of non-bank systemic entities.” The draft further identified 80 proposals that would either be withdrawn or modified, many of which are directives and regulation that have stalled due to lack of support from member states.

Dave Roberts, senior consultant at Towers Watson in the UK, noted that the withdrawal of the revised IORP Directive so soon after Michel Barnier published it risked being perceived as “openly critical” of the former commissioner’s work. Roberts also noted the problems that could have arisen due to the commissioners currently involved. “Withdrawing the Directive could lead to accusations of national bias – with the Netherlands and UK leading antagonists of IORP II,” he said.

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