Mario Draghi to face the Chamber

At the proposal of the N-VA, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Mario Draghi, has been invited to come to the Chamber and defend his negative interest policy and procurement programme. “ECB policy brings considerable side effects,” the N-VA says. “The purchasing power of savers decreases, pension funds are put under pressure and it causes problems for banks. So Mario Draghi certainly has some explaining to do.”

The ECB defends its policy by pointing out that decreased interest rates and mass money creation are aimed at encouraging people to consume rather than save. “The European Central Bank says that it hopes to stimulate the economy by doing this. However, since savers are forced to find other ways to invest their savings, for example in property or shares, we are in danger of creating bubbles in our economy,” the N-VA warns. “And we all know what happens when such a bubble bursts.”

Delaying and cancelling tactics

At the same time, the ECB is trying to limit the interest burden for Southern European countries by purchasing debt certificates of euro countries. This is aimed at giving them breathing space in order to carry out the necessary restructuring and reforms. However, the N-VA is concerned about delaying and cancelling tactics: “If the pressure of interest burdens disappears, the need for reforms becomes less pressing. In addition, the question may be asked whether such a procurement programme of company Bonds A loan to a company or a government, which is paid back with interest. In contrast to shares, most bonds have a fixed duration and a fixed interest, which is usually paid out on an annual basis. Therefore, as a general rule, bonds have less risk than shares. bonds is fair. It means that big enterprises, in contrast to SMEs, are able to borrow almost for free and pay crazy prices for take-overs of smaller companies in the same industry that do not have those same options.

The N-VA is very critical about ECB policy. MEP Sander Loones has already asked questions about the impact of the interest policy several times. Belgian Minister of Finance Johan van Overtveldt has also already pointed out the possible side effects.