Foreign ministers out of the picture at summit

FINANCIAL REFORM DEAL

Governments will agree at the summit to launch negotiations with the European Parliament on reforming the EU's supervision of financial services.
Leaders are expected to endorse a deal on the reforms reached by finance ministers yesterday (2 December) and to agree that it will constitute their negotiating position with MEPs. The draft legislation will create three EU authorities with binding powers over the banking, insurance and securities sectors. The powers include ruling on disputes between national supervisors and giving direct orders to these supervisors in times of crisis.
Anders Borg, Sweden's finance minister, secured the deal after satisfying concerned member states that the authorities' will not be able to take decisions with fiscal consequences for national governments.
The Parliament's four largest political groups have said that the reforms envisaged are too weak and will need to be amended. The centre-right, socialist, liberal and green groups said in a joint statement that finance ministers had gone “in the wrong direction”. “European citizens are awaiting effective measures to prevent new crises,” they said. Jim Brunsden