The Eurogroup is the recognised collective term for the informal meetings of the
finance minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
s of the
eurozone
The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro ( €) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU polic ...
—those
member states of the European Union (EU) which have adopted the
euro
The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
as their official
currency
A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins.
A more general ...
. The group has 19 members. It exercises political control over the currency and related aspects of the
EU's monetary union such as the
Stability and Growth Pact
The Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) is an agreement, among all of the 27 member states of the European Union, to facilitate and maintain the stability of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Based primarily on Articles 121 and 126 of the Tr ...
. The current President of the Eurogroup is
Paschal Donohoe, the
Minister for Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
.
The ministers meet ''
in camera
''In camera'' (; Latin: "in a chamber"). is a legal term that means ''in private''. The same meaning is sometimes expressed in the English equivalent: ''in chambers''. Generally, ''in-camera'' describes court cases, parts of it, or process ...
'' a day before a meeting of the
Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) of the
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union, often referred to in the treaties and other official documents simply as the Council, and informally known as the Council of Ministers, is the third of the seven Institutions of the European Union (EU) as ...
. They communicate their decisions via press and document releases. The group is related to the
Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union, often referred to in the treaties and other official documents simply as the Council, and informally known as the Council of Ministers, is the third of the seven Institutions of the European Union (EU) as ...
(only Eurogroup member states vote on issues relating to the euro in the ECOFIN) and was formalised under the
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member s ...
.
History
The Eurogroup, formerly known as the ''Euro-X'' and ''Euro-XI'' in relation to the number of states adopting the euro, was established at the request of France as a policy co-ordination and consultation forum on eurozone matters.
The December 1997
European Council endorsed its creation and the first meeting was held on 4 June 1998 at
Senningen Castle
Senningen Castle (french: link=no, Château de Senningen) is a revival-style castle, located in the town of Senningen, in the west of the commune of Niederanven, in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Today it is used by the State for official meeti ...
in Luxembourg .
[History](_blank)
Eurogroup website
To begin with, the chair of the Eurogroup mirrored that of the
rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, except where the Council presidency was held by a non-eurozone country, in which case the chair was held by the next eurozone country that would hold the Council presidency.
In 2004 the ministers decided to elect a president and in 2008, the group held a summit of heads of state and government, rather than Ministers of Finance, for the first time.
This became known as the
Euro summit and has held meetings irregularly during the financial crisis.
Since the beginning of the monetary union, its role has grown in regards to the euro's economic governance. The fact the group meets just before the Ecofin council means it can pre-approve all Ecofin's decisions on eurozone affairs.
[Schwarzer, Daniela (24 November 2006]
Institutionalisation through the back door
, Eurozone Watch In 2009 the
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member s ...
formalised the group and its president.
Organisation
President
The current President of the Eurogroup is
Paschal Donohoe, the
Minister for Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
.
In September 2004, the Eurogroup decided it should have a semi-permanent president who would be appointed for a term of two years. Finance Minister and then
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
of
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...
Jean-Claude Juncker
Jean-Claude Juncker (; born 9 December 1954) is a Luxembourgish politician who served as the 21st Prime Minister of Luxembourg from 1995 to 2013 and 12th President of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. He also served as Finance Ministe ...
was appointed to be the first President of the Eurogroup, mandated from 1 January 2005 until 31 December 2006, and was re-appointed for a second term in September 2006. Under the Lisbon Treaty, this system was formalised and Juncker was confirmed for another term. The presidency has helped strengthen the group, since before Juncker's appointment the Eurogroup was only present at meetings in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...
. Since the position of President of the Eurogroup was created, the president has attended the
European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs every six months.
After his reappointment as President of the Eurogroup in January 2010, Juncker emphasised the need to broaden the scope of the Eurogroup's business. In particular in terms of co-ordinating economic policies and representation. Juncker proposed creating a small secretariat consisting of four to five civil servants to prepare the group's meetings. However, although France and Spain support such plans, Germany fears that strengthening the group might undermine the independence of the
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank (ECB) is the prime component of the monetary Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) as well as one of seven institutions of the European Union. It is one of the world's most important centra ...
.
[Willis, Andrew (19 January 2010]
Juncker wants more eurozone activism
EU Observer In June 2012, the Estonian Minister of Finance
Jürgen Ligi was being considered as a possible successor for Juncker. In January 2013, Juncker however hinted that his likely successor would be
Jeroen Dijsselbloem of the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, who was appointed second President of the Eurogroup on 21 January 2013. On 13 July 2015, Dijsselbloem was reelected.
On 9 July 2020,
Paschal Donohoe of
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
was elected to be the fourth President of the Eurogroup taking office on 13 July 2020.
On 5 December 2022, Donohoe was re-elected, with his second term beginning on 13 January 2023.
File:Jean-Claude Juncker 2012-06-27.JPG, Jean-Claude Juncker
Jean-Claude Juncker (; born 9 December 1954) is a Luxembourgish politician who served as the 21st Prime Minister of Luxembourg from 1995 to 2013 and 12th President of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. He also served as Finance Ministe ...
(2005–2013)
File:Informal Meeting of EU Finance Ministers (26508744801).jpg, Jeroen Dijsselbloem
(2013–2018)
File:2018 Finanzminister Löger bei Eurogruppe und ECOFIN (Mário Centeno).jpg, Mário Centeno
Mário José Gomes de Freitas Centeno (born 9 December 1966) is a Portuguese economist, university professor, and politician. From 2015 to 2020, he was Minister of Finance of Portugal in the government cabinet of Prime Minister António Costa of ...
(2018–2020)
File:Paschal Donohoe TD.jpg, Paschal Donohoe
(2020–present)
Members
The
ECB President
The president of the European Central Bank is the head of the European Central Bank (ECB), the main institution responsible for the management of the euro and monetary policy in the Eurozone of the European Union (EU).
The current president of ...
,
Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner and Chairman of the
Eurogroup Working Group also attend the meetings. Members of the EU who choose not to participate in the
Eurozone
The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro ( €) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU polic ...
have been excluded from observer status. The membership is however fluid; IMF personnel are sometimes allowed to be present at meetings. What remains unknown about this group is whether they allow observers to speak or speech by the observers is forbidden.
;Observers
*
President of the European Central Bank:
Christine Lagarde
Christine Madeleine Odette Lagarde (; née Lallouette, ; born 1 January 1956) is a French politician and lawyer who has been serving as President of the European Central Bank since 2019. She previously served as the 11th managing director of the ...
(1 November 2019)
*Executive Vice-President for An Economy that Works for People:
Valdis Dombrovskis (1 December 2019)
*President of the
Eurogroup Working Group:
Tuomas Saarenheimo (1 April 2020)
Legal basis
Prior to the
Lisbon Treaty
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member st ...
, the Eurogroup had no legal basis. A formal legal basis was granted for the first time under the Lisbon Treaty when it came into force on 1 December 2009.
Protocol 14 of the treaty lays out only two articles to govern the group;
Furthermore, the treaty amended the Council of the EU's rules so that when the full Ecofin council votes on matters only affecting the eurozone, only those states using the euro (the Eurogroup countries) are permitted to vote on it.
This vastly informal nature has led to a number of controversies, criticisms and debates on the governance of the monetary union.
Criticism against the Eurogroup
Because of its minimalist legal basis, the Eurogroup is mostly an informal body with very large discretionary powers. Though such nature may have allowed decisiveness in decision making during the euro crisis, this also led the Eurogroup to suffer from the lack of accountability and limited democratic oversight. Hence a growing number of critics by various stakeholders against the undemocratic aspects of the Eurogroup.
In 2017, the Commissioner Pierre Moscovici described the Eurogroup as "a pale imitation of a democratic body." and former Greek finance minister
Yanis Varoufakis
Ioannis "Yanis" Varoufakis ( el, Ιωάννης Γεωργίου "Γιάνης" Βαρουφάκης, Ioánnis Georgíou "Giánis" Varoufákis, ; born 24 March 1961) is a Greek economist and politician. A former academic, he served as the Gree ...
vocally denounced its "outrageous opacity".
The non-transparency of the Eurogroup was a significant factor in the formation of the DiEM25 movement to "re-democratize Europe", to which Varoufakis belongs. NGO Transparency International has also repeatedly called for an overhaul of the governance of the Eurogroup. The
European Ombudsman
The European Ombudsman is an inter-institutional body of the European Union that holds the institutions, bodies and agencies of the EU to account, and promotes good administration. The Ombudsman helps people, businesses and organisations facing ...
has even opened a case on the matter, demanding more transparency.
Among all those critics, here are concrete examples of democratic shortcomings of the Eurogroup:
* the Eurogroup does not publish minutes neither agenda documents from its meetings and its proceedings are vastly informal
* Conflict of interest of the chair of the Eurogroup who both represents his or her own governments and the Eurogroup as a whole;
* Domination by a restricted number of countries and/or the Troika
* Absence of accountability towards the European Parliament
Possible evolution of the governance of the Eurogroup
Economic government for the Eurozone
In 2008, in light of the
2008 financial crisis,
French President
The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa (; ; born 28 January 1955) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012.
Born in Paris, he is of Hungarian, Greek Jewish, and French origin. Mayor of Neuilly-sur-Sei ...
(speaking at the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...
as the outgoing
President of the European Council
The president of the European Council is the person presiding over and driving forward the work of the European Council on the world stage. This institution comprises the college of heads of state or government of EU member states as well as ...
) called the Eurogroup to be replaced by a "clearly identified economic government" for the eurozone, stating it was not possible for the eurozone to go on without it. The eurozone economic government would discuss issues with the European Central Bank, which would remain independent.
[Sarkozy pushes eurozone 'economic government']
, France 24 (21 October 2008)
This government would come in the form of a regular meeting of the eurozone heads of state and government (similar to the
European Council) rather than simply the finance ministers which happens with the current Eurogroup. Sarkozy stated that "only heads of state and government have the necessary democratic legitimacy" for the role. This idea was based on the meeting of eurozone leaders in 2008 who met to agree a co-ordinated eurozone response to the banking crisis.
[Germany rejects idea of eurozone 'economic government': report](_blank)
EU Business (21 October 2008)
This is in contrast to an early proposal from former
Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Maurice Marie Louise Verhofstadt (; ; born 11 April 1953) is a Belgian politician who was the leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe from 2009 to 2019, and has been a member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Belgium ...
who saw the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
taking a leading role in a new economic government, something that would be opposed by the less
integrationist
Racial integration, or simply integration, includes desegregation (the process of ending systematic racial segregation). In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity ...
states.
[An economic government for the eurozone?](_blank)
PDF, Federal Union Sarkozy's proposal was opposed by Eurogroup chair Jean-Claude Juncker who did not think Europe was ripe for such a large step at the time
and opposition from Germany killed off the proposal.
[Willis, Andrew (15 June 2010]
Merkel: Spain can access aid if needed
EU Observer Merkel approved of the idea of an economic government, but for the whole of the EU, not just the eurozone as doing so could split the EU and relegate non-eurozone states to second class members.
In his 2011
State of the Union address
The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current condi ...
,
Commission President
The president of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The President of the Commission leads a Cabinet of Commissioners, referred to as the College, collectively account ...
José Manuel Barroso
José Manuel Durão Barroso (; born 23 March 1956) is a Portuguese politician and university teacher, currently serving as non-executive chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He previously served as the 11th president of the European Commi ...
opposed the Franco-German intergovernmental plan, stating that community institutions should perform that role.
In 2017, a number of voices including Pierre Moscovici, Emmanuel Macron and Jean-Claude Juncker have called for the Eurogroup to formally chaired by the
European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro. This would constitute a step towards formalizing the Eurogroup as a branch of the European executive.
International Representation to the IMF and the G20
On 15 April 2008 in Brussels, Juncker suggested that the eurozone should be represented at the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster gl ...
as a bloc, rather than each member state separately: "It is absurd for those 15 countries not to agree to have a single representation at the IMF. It makes us look absolutely ridiculous. We are regarded as buffoons on the international scene."
[Vucheva, Elitsa (15 April 200]
eurozone countries should speak with one voice, Juncker says
EU Observer. However
Finance Commissioner Joaquín Almunia
Joaquín Almunia Amann (born 17 June 1948) is a Spanish politician and formerly, prominent member of the European Commission. During his tenure in the two Barroso Commissions, he was European commissioner responsible for economic and monetary ...
stated that before there is common representation, a common political agenda should be agreed.
In January 2010 Juncker indicated that the commission is to propose that the group become a member of the
G20
The G20 or Group of Twenty is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 countries and the European Union (EU). It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stability, climate change mitigation ...
.
Other controversies
The Cypriot banking crisis
During the 2013 Economic crisis in Cyprus, Eurogroup proceeded towards the first bail-in approach towards the Cypriot banking sector, resulting in the confiscation of deposits of Cyprus' two main banks. Despite the lack of any visibility on the banks' credentials and balance sheets, Eurogroup decided to utilise deposits of the two banks for a bail-in. The process is not completed yet. However, it has been criticized by some in the EU as an attack on private property.
Jeroen Dijsselbloem's comments
In March 2017, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the President of the Eurogroup at the time, told the German newspaper
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
The ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung'' (; ''FAZ''; "''Frankfurt General Newspaper''") is a centre-right conservative-liberal and liberal-conservativeHans Magnus Enzensberger: Alter Wein in neuen Schläuchen' (in German). ''Deutschland Radio'', ...
"As a Social Democrat, I attribute exceptional importance to solidarity. But those who call for it also have duties. I cannot spend all my money on drinks and women and then hold my hand up for help. That principle applies on a personal, local, national and also on a European level." while referring to Southern European countries affected by the
European Debt Crisis
The European debt crisis, often also referred to as the eurozone crisis or the European sovereign debt crisis, is a multi-year debt crisis that took place in the European Union (EU) from 2009 until the mid to late 2010s. Several eurozone memb ...
.
This statement led to strong reactions by many European figures, as
Gianni Pitella, head of the
Socialist group in the European Parliament (to which
Dijsselbloem's party belongs) said "There is no excuse or reason for using such language, especially from someone who is supposed to be a progressive".
Manfred Weber
Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has served as President of the European People's Party (EPP) since 2022 and as Leader of the EPP Group in the European Parliament since 2014. He has been a Member of the European Parli ...
, leader of the
European People's Party group
The European People's Party Group (EPP Group) is a centre-right political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent MEPs ...
, tweeted "Eurozone is about responsibility, solidarity but also respect. No room for stereotypes". The
Portuguese Prime Minister
The prime minister of the Portuguese Republic ( pt, primeiro-ministro da República Portuguesa) is the head of the Government of Portugal. They coordinate the actions of all ministers, represent the Government as a whole, report their actions ...
,
António Costa
António Luís Santos da Costa GCIH (; born 17 July 1961) is a Portuguese lawyer and politician serving as the 119th and current prime minister of Portugal since 26 November 2015, presiding over the XXI (2015–2019), XXII (2019–2022) and ...
, said his words were "racist, xenophobic and sexist" and that "Europe will only be credible as a common project on the day when Mr. Dijsselbloem stops being Head of the Eurogroup and apologises clearly to all the countries and peoples that were profoundly offended by his remarks". Former
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
Matteo Renzi (; born 11 January 1975) is an Italian politician who served as prime minister of Italy from 2014 to 2016. He has been a senator for Florence since 2018. Renzi has served as the leader of Italia Viva (IV) since 2019, having b ...
also called on Dijsselbloem to quit, saying that "If he wants to offend Italy, he should do it in a sports bar back home, not in his institutional role".
In a reaction Dijsselbloem said: "Everyone knows that I didn’t say that all southern Europeans spend their money on drinks and women. That’s not what was in the interview and it wasn’t my message. The anger about the interview is anger about eight years of policies to deal with the crisis.
..I would have rephrased it otherwise probably. But it was my way of making clear that solidarity is not charity. It's not for nothing that the aid programs of the European emergency fund are accompanied by strict conditions: You get very cheap loans provided you take action to restore order. That is an important principle. For the ones who keep zooming in on those two words my message might be inconvenient.
..It won't end well with the eurozone if we keep breaking our previous agreements.
..My choice of words was not right, I'm sorry if you took offense, but I'm still behind the message."
See also
*
European debt crisis
The European debt crisis, often also referred to as the eurozone crisis or the European sovereign debt crisis, is a multi-year debt crisis that took place in the European Union (EU) from 2009 until the mid to late 2010s. Several eurozone memb ...
*
List of acronyms associated with the Eurozone crisis
*
Euro 50 Group
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Council of the European Union
Economy of the European Union
Eurozone